Reach out to a New Truth
by ZeromusTrueSelf
Summary: An Alternate take on The Story of Persona 4. With new members of the Investigation team, new suspects in the murder, several new events; some minor and some major that will change the entire course of the investigation. Yu Narukami and his friends seek to to end the Murders in Inaba...but may find a darker truth that lays underneath. YuXChie with other pairings to follow later.
1. A New Truth

_**I AM THOU**_

_**THOU ART I**_

_**THOU IS TO DEPART, TOWARDS A CHANGED HISTORY**_

_**THY SHALL EXPERIENCE A NEW REALITY**_

_**A NEW PRESENT**_

_**A NEW FUTURE**_

_**EVEN A NEW PAST**_

_**WITH NEW BONDS**_

_**AND THE DESTRUCTION OF A SELECTION OF THY'S CURRENT BONDS**_

_**THIS IS A NEW WORLD **_

_**WHERE EVERYTHING HAS CHANGED**_

* * *

**YASO-INABA, DOJIMA RESIDENCE **

**THE LAST DAY **

Walking up to his destination, he stared once again at the item in his hand. Staring intently at the blank, clear disc case, its only feature sans the actual disc inside was the small piece of blank white tape stuck on the cover with the words written in red ink, simply spelling out;

**"The Truth"**

**"From The Man Who Sold the World"**

He read those letters intently, focusing on each and every letter there. He could hear the celebrations beneath him, but he ignored it as he place the earbuds within his ears. Turning his portable CD played on, he clinked the disc case open and inserted the CD into the device, turning the machines volume to max, before the audio cut the silence.

_"Now do you remember...who you are? What you__ were meant to do?**"**_

* * *

**PROLOGUE:**

**NEW TRUTH  
**

_April 2011 would forever be the month that changed the life of Yu Narukami_

_His parents had taken an overseas job, leaving him in the care of his uncle Ryotaro Dojima along with his daughter Nanako in the small rural town in Inaba_

_He attended school and became quick friends with Yosuke Hanamura and Chie Satonaka, all just days after a horrid murder shocked the small town. Mayumi Yamano, a young announcer for the local TV station was found dead, hung up on a telephone poll, just days after she appeared on the supposed "Midnight Channel", a supposed program that only appeared on rainy nights at exactly midnight._

_Morbid curiousity got the better of him after Chie informed this of this phenomenon, and he ended almost eaten by his TV that night_

_Trying to explain this to Yosuke and Chie merely brought scoffs and laughter_

_And then they fell in a TV at Junes, entering into a completely new world and met a bizarre creature named Teddie._

_A long bizarre incident occurred which involved a bizarre, eerie, bedroom and beings known as Shadows, Teddie sent them away before things got too hazy_

_And the next day, the body of Saki Konishi, the girl who discovered the body of Mayumi and a third year student at his school was found dead as well._

_Yosuke, distraught by her death returned to the tv world the next day. In this world, they find a pathway to an area resembling Inaba. There, in this realm created by the true feelings of Saki, Yosuke's repressed feelings of how he was not really liked by Saki, whom he harbored a deep crush on, manifested into a clone-like figure of himself._

_Yosuke's inability to accept the clone's claim that he did not enter the realm for Saki's death and it was for the sense of adventure allowed it to become Shadow Yosuke. A dark manifestation of Yosuke's repressed thoughts_

_But at the same time, Yu Narukami awakened a gifted power_

_A Persona_

_After defeating the clone with his Persona, Izanagi, Yosuke accepted his true feelings, allowing the Shadow to manifest into Yosuke's very own Persona, Jiraiya._

_Eventually, a shadowy figure began to appear on the Midnight Channel, which was feared by the group to be Chie's best friend Yukiko Amagi, though she was still present in the real world. However, Yukiko was indeed kidnapped eventually, and afterwards clear and vivid images of her appeared on the Midnight Channel._

_With Teddie giving analytical support, Yu and Yosuke decide to venture into the TV World and into a new area known simply as Yukiko's Castle and use their Persona's to fight. They both warned Chie that she shouldn't enter since she lacked a Persona, though she ignored the warning and ran ahead._

_The two eventually caught up with Chie, whose own thoughts and emotions manifested as Shadow Chie; it battled the pair of Persona users but after its defeat and acceptance by Chie, it became Chie's own Persona, Tomoe_

_The team, now having three Persona users, rushed to the top floor of the Castle. Confronting Shadow Yukiko, the trio defeated her and the Shadow manifested Yukiko's Persona. Konohaka Sakuya._

_Giving her some time to recover, the team asked Yukiko about the circumstances of her kidnapping, only for her to have no memory of the event. Nevertheless, she agreed to help them in the their cause to find the true culprit behind the murders of Mayumi and Saki_

_It was now April 21..._

* * *

**APRIL 21 2011**

"Heads up!" Kou yelled as he leapt up into the air, Yu having to dodge so Kou's chest wouldn't collide with his face

As he avoided the impact, Igor's words echoed through his head

The stronger "Social Links" he forms, the stronger his Persona's can become

However, he did not join the Basketball team solely for this reason, he joined a club out of yearning for something other than solving murders, Kou and Daisuke Nagase, the captain of the Soccer team, had become his true friends in the short time they had known each other.

"Yo, you two still here?" Came Daisuke's voice as he entered the gym "The bell rang like five minutes ago"

"Oh, that would kinda explain why everyone left..." Kou let out a soft chuckle "I thought they were all jealous of me and Narukami"

"I barely did anything today" Yu notified him

"Oh yeah, sorry, I was kinda hogging the ball" Kou laughed "Well if we're done for the day, let's go grab some grub"

"I'm down for some Aiya!" Daisuke piped happily "You comin' Narukami?"

"Sure" The Silver haired boy nodded

"Alright, let's get changed an-...ah, crap" Kou sighed "I just remembered, I can't"

"What're you talking about?" Daisuke asked with a raised eyebrow "You down on money? I'll treat ya if-"

"No it's not that, I just remembered I got some personal stuff to take care of" Kou informed them as he began to leave "You two go on ahead, see ya!"

"Ah...that's right" Daisuke mumbled "Today's the day he's going before the honorable _house of Ichijo"_

"The house of what?" Yu questioned

"Hmm...guess it wouldn't be too out of line to tell you, Kou seems to trust you after all" Daisuke smiled at him "Maybe you can actually help me out..."

"So-" Daisuke began as he and Yu arrived at the diner "About Kou..."

Yu gazed at him as the two sat down, noticing an unusually serious face on Daisuke

"It's kinda shitty of me to do this behind his back...I wonder if you could help him out" Daisuke said sadly, rubbing the back of his head

"Sure, what do you need me to do" Yu replied in his usual deadpan manner

"Wow, you really don't waste any time..." Daisuke chuckled before getting serious once again "It's about Kou's family...he lives by himself but his parents place is like, right next door...and every week he drops by, like today. His family is...what's the right word here..._distinguished_"

Yu raised a quizzical eyebrow at this

"Traditional, strict...you'd never know this by looking at them though" Daisuke continued "Kou's grandmother is the head of the family...everything she says is practically law...and the problem is that the old bag doesn't want Kou playing basketball, says it's _barbaric_ or some shit"

"I see" Yu nodded "She really feels this away about a sport?"

"According to her, there are proper sports and those that...aren't" Daisuke sighed once more "Kou's had to give a lot of things up for the old crone, ever since he was kid, but basketball...it's way too important for him to give it up...So I want you to help out, come to practice whenever you can"

"Leave it to me" Yu said with a small smile

"I knew I could count on you" Daisuke smiled back "So you're coming to training on Saturday?"

"No"

"Huh?!" Daisuke blurted

"I have to work this Saturday" Yu explained

"Oh yeah, that's right" Daisuke remembered, Yu had brought up his part time job as a daycare assistant a few times "Well...whenever you can"

"I will" Yu nodded once more, feeling his relationship with the pair had deepened slightly

"I'm really glad" Daisuke smiled before pulling out his wallet "Now come on, order anything! It's all on me, my treeeeeee-oh crap"

"What's wrong?" Yu questioned

"I-I already used up this weeks allowance..." Daisuke sighed "H-Hey about some Zha-cai, those are pretty cheep"

"I'll pay" Yu stated as he pulled out his wallet "Order whatever you want

"R-Really? Thanks man!" Daisuke laughed, slapping Narukami on the back "I owe you one, I was just about to starve!"

* * *

**APRIL 22 2011**

"Friggin' rain" Kou sighed as he and Daisuke lounged around on the second floor

"I dunno why you're so worked up" Daisuke droned "You don't even practice on Friday's..."

"I know, but what if it doesn't clear up by tomorrow?" Kou grumbled

"Relax, so you miss one day of practice" Daisuke shrugged "It's not like the entire team's going to disband"

"Don't joke about that" Kou sighed as a familiar face began to approach him

"Yo, Narukami" Daisuke greeted

"Hey" Yu waved back, another person trailing behind him

"C-C-Chie-san!" Kou stuttered

"Oh boy, here we go" Daisuke quietly mumbled, well aware of his friends crush on the girl with the bowl cut

"Oh hey, Ichijo" Chie smiled

"What's going on, you two going on a date?" Daisuke asked "'Coulda picked a better day than this though"

"W-What?!" Kou screeched "YOU TWO A-"

"No" Chie laughed with a small scoff "I convinced Narukami to come by to Aiya to try the Rainy Day Bowl Challenge!"

"Geez, that damn thing is a portal to the meat dimension" Daisuke shuddered "Good luck, you're gonna need it"

"You two wanna tag along?" Chie questioned "Yosuke and Yukiko are coming too so-"

"S-S-Sure!" Kou nodded happily

"Can't, I have to train" Daisuke explained

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Yu questioned "It's a Friday, plus it's pouring outside"

"They booked the field for the track team on Saturday a few days ago, so Soccer practice was moved to today at the gym" Daisuke informed them "Just as well too..."

"Ah, sorry, were you waiting long?" Yukiko apologized as she popped up "Ah, Ichijo-san, Nagase-san, are you joining us?"

"Me, yes, Daisuke, no" Kou smirked

"Ah, that's good, the more the merrier" Yosuke laughed as he too pulled up "Though if you don't finish, you're paying"

"Will you reconsider, Nagase-san?" Yukiko questioned him

"No thanks" He waved her off as he began to depart "I have stuff to do"

"Are you sure?" She asked him as she placed her hand on his arm "We-"

"Hey, I said no, damn it!" Daisuke roared

The shout startled all of them, as well as the annoyed glare Daisuke was shooting before he angrily stormed away

"D-Did I do something?" Yukiko stuttered as Chie angrily burned holes in Daisuke's back with her eyes.

"The hell is his problem?" Yosuke spat loudly enough to make sure Daisuke could hear, Yu standing in front of him to ensure Yosuke lead after him

"Oh boy" Kou sighed "Don't worry Yukiko-san, that wasn't your fault"

"But, what-" She began

"I'll explain at Aiya" Kou nodded

**AFTER-SCHOOL**

"Daisuke...has a thing about girls" Kou began to explain to the group at the table, he himself sitting up on a stool at the counter

"A Thing?" Yosuke questioned "You mean...he likes dudes?"

"No, no" Kou said with a shake of his head as the group gave Yosuke a look "I'll tell you this because I trust Narukami and you guys are his friends, so I'm trusting you to keep a lid on this..."

They all nodded on unison

"Alright...see, Daisuke used to talk about girls the same way every other guy did...but back in middle school, Daisuke started dating someone" Kou began "But they never even held hands or anything...they..."

Kou sighed as he rubbed his temple

"He got dumped pretty badly...she made a whole big scene and she even slapped him...ever since then, he avoids girls...goes on about how _he doesn't know what it's like to like someone anymore_, so what happened before wasn't your fault Yukiko-san, that's just how he is..."

"I see" Yukiko stated as she hung her head down

"But still, that was way outta line an-..." Chie began but drifted off when she say Aiya was bring over their order

"That's five rainy day beef bowls" She confirmed as she set down the orders "You have two hours to finish the whole thing, it's 300 yen for each bowl not finished"

"Alright!" Chie squealed happily, Kou blushing at the adorable expression on her face "LET'S DO THIS!"

At the end of a long, beefy war. Only Chie emerged victorious. The others had given up within the first hour, prompting a mocking scoff from the girl

"Amateurs" She spat

**APRIL 23 2011**

"Hey Narukami, you comin to-" Kou began as he spotted his friend in the hallway "Oh wait, you gotta work today, right?"

"My shift doesn't start 4pm, so I can stick around for the first half of practice" Yu informed him

"Y-You're coming?! sweet!" Kou piped happily before taking off "See ya"

"What's going on?" Came Daisuke's voice as he approached Yu "I thought you were starting at 3:30 today?"

"I managed to pull a later shift" He explained "After the other day and what you said..."

"Thanks man" Daisuke smiled "I appreciate it, and I'm sure Kou does too..."

Yu have a small smile and a nod before departing

**BASKETBALL PRACTICE**

"Everyone, this is Ai Ebihara, the new manager" Mr Kondo piped

"The what now?" Was the collective response of the team as they gazed at the girl standing beside the teacher

"Now you guys won't have to take turns doing all the work anymore. You can thank me later!" Mr. Kondo beamed before turning to the girl "Go on, introduce yourself"

"Ai Ebihara" The girl said with an annoyed sigh "You already introduced me, moron"

"Great, take it from here guys, the TV crew should be here soon!" Kondo said happily before departing

"TV Crew?" Yu questioned

"Oh you didn't hear?" Kou asked excitedly "We're gonna be on TV"

"We're what?" Yu asked quizzically "Why?"

"Yeah, some news folk are going around the country interviewing school sports teams about being young athletes" Another player piped in "It's all to show the _glorious athletes of the future _or some tag line crap like that, the soccer club's in on it too"

"I see..." Yu muttered

"I don't know how you didn't hear, the notices were put out on the 17th" Kou noted

_"That would explain why..." Yu confirmed to himself, he was so focused on going on the TV that day with the others..._

"So your parents are okay with this?" Yu asked "Daisuke told me about-"

"Daisuke did?" Kou repeated in bewilderment "Yeah, I suppose he would do something like that...I told you about his problem and I guess he shared mine..."

Kou let out a sigh before looking to his friend

"My parents don't know anything about it, I'm hoping when they see me on the news tonight, they'll see how importa-"

"I'm gonna tell you guys straight up, I'm not lifting a finger for this team" Came the stern voice of Ai, cutting off Kou "I wouldn't be caught dead watching out for a bunch of sweaty guys."

"Wha-?!" Kou spat "Then why did you-"

"I've missed too many days of school. But they'll let me move up if I manage a team." She declared with a flick of her hair "But don't expect me to put any effort into it. For the most part, I'm not even gonna be here. And I'm definitely not sticking around for this interview thing today"

With that, she flung her bag over he shoulder and began to depart

"Well, see ya. Or not." She said with a wave as she exited the gym

"Great..." Kou sighed

"I should get going too" Yu noted "My shift starts in 30 minutes"

"Alright, see ya" Kou smiled as his friend began to depart "Make sure to watch the news tonight!"

**EVENING**

Yu sat down, slowly consuming the sushi Nanako had bought that day, the two sitting alone with only the background noise of the tv followed by a small question emerging from his cousins throat breaking the silence

"Is it good?"

"Yeah" he nodded with a small smile

_"And now it's time this weeks special report, showcasing the young athletes in Japan, tonight we're in the small town of Inaba at Yasogami High School"_

"Huh? Isn't that your school?" Asked Nanako's small voice, earning a small nod from Yu

_"Tonight, we talk to both the basketball and soccer teams, about their-"_

"Aren't you on the Basketball team?" Nanako asked before getting excited "Are you gonna be on TV?!"

"No, I had to leave before the news crew got there" He explained, causing a disappointed look to grace his cousins face

"Aww..."

_"We're here today with Kou Ichijo and Daisuke Nagase, the captains of the Basketball and Soccer teams"_

_"Hey, I'm Kou!"_

_"Daisuke"_

_"Now then-"_

"So they really are on TV" Yu muttered before he heard the familiar _Pi Pi Pi _come from his phone. Opening it up, he saw it was a text from Yosuke

_"It's raining tonight, don't forget"_

He gave himself a small mental nod and closed the phone

**MIDNIGHT**

Yu started intently at the small clock in the darkness of the room, ticking away the seconds until midnight, but the instant the clock struck twelve, his eyes drifted over to the blank TV screen

It remained inert for a few moments, but soon the familiar sound of static and bright yellow backgrounds came into view

And for the first time ever, two people appeared on the TV


	2. Fujin

**Fujin**

Yu stared dumbfounded at the scene, for the first time there were two figures who appeared on the Midnight Channel. He pulled himself in closer, making sure not to get too close as to not get pulled in again.

He squinted his eyes, trying to identify the two. Their faces were too heavily covered by shadows to make out but the height difference between the two stirred something with Yu. He felt like he should know who those two were.

And then it hit him, the shorter one was wearing a sleeveless jersey and the taller one was wearing what looked like a gym outfit

"Is that..."

But before he could observe more, the feed cut out. He stared at the blank screen a few seconds before his phone began to ring, he didn't even need to check the caller id to see who it was from

_"Dude, did you see?" Yosuke's voice came from the other end "Why the hell were there two people this time?!"_

"I don't know" Yu sighed "But I think..."

_"Yeah?"_

"I think that might have been Kou and Daisuke..."

_"What? Why them?"_

"One was wearing a basketball jersey and the other was wearing gym clothes" Yu explained over the phone

_"Hey yeah..." Yosuke noted in a moment of realization "And come to think of it, the heights were about the same..."_

Yu sighed as he rubbed his neck, if that really was Kou and Daisuke, then this case had just gotten even more personal

_"Let's all meet up at Junes tomorrow, we'll discuss it there"_

"Yeah, see ya" Yu said as he hung up his phone. Knowing there was nothing else he could do, he laid down on his futon and drifted into a restless sleep

_"Welcome to the Velvet room..." Came the voice of the long nosed man _

_"Oh, I'm here again?" Yu noted as he gazed around the limousine  
_

_"Do not worry, you are fast asleep in the real world" Igor said in his usual tone "We have called you here to inform you of a rather important change in your destiny"_

_"A Change?" Yu repeated_

_"There exist an infinite amount of possibilities within your destiny" Margaret began to explain as she closed the book in her lap "And you have stumbled onto one of these many unique paths"_

_"I do not comprehend" Yu stated flatly _

_"Put simply, with the most recent disappearance, we have entered a unique path on your destiny, one we cannot foresee the end result of" Igor smiled "It appears that the preset ending to your story has been changed, and won't it be most enjoyable to discover where this new path leads?"_

_"I...guess?" Yu confided, it certainly wouldn't be enjoyable if that really was Kou and Daisuke..._

_"Well then...until we meet again" Igor grinned as Yu started to wake up_

* * *

**SUNDAY/ APRIL 24 2011/ JUNES**

"So if that really was Ichijo-san and Nagase-san on TV last night" Yukiko began "What does that mean for the investigation?"

"Well for starters, it means more than one person can appear on the Midnight Channel" Yosuke sighed "Something we didn't even consider was possible"

"Plus, I really doubt Kou and Daisuke had any involvement with Mayumi Yamano" Chie added on

"If this really is Ichijo-san and Nagase-san, then I suppose we can rule out that theory, as well as the targets only being women" Yukiko nodded "It also means we have to go in there before the fog sets in"

"And it's going to be harder this time since it's two people we're going in for" Yosuke sighed "And so soon after we rescued Yukiko..."

"Are we going to have to wait a few days?" Chie added "I don't think any of us really know where they live, and besides, what if it's not them?"

"I think we're waiting anyway, I don't know their addresses and the electronics department is crowded today, so we can't sneak into the TV and ask Teddie if there's anyone else over there" Yu noted "I have practice on Tuesday, I suppose I'll see then"

"Until then, all we can do is wait" Yosuke sighed "The next time it's raining is on Tuesday so that's when it's time to decide"

"I dunno if Yukiko should come, I mean it's so soon after we rescued her..." Chie said sadly

"Chie, I'm fine" Yukiko affirmed her friend "I may not be 100% yet but I can manage"

"What do you think, you're our leader, you think she's recovered enough?" Yosuke asked Yu

"She seems fine" Was Yu's reply

"How about asking her yourself?" Chie grumbled with a point towards Yukiko

"Well now that we've decided, how about we hang out for a while?" Yosuke questioned "Seeing as we're all here and all"

"Me and Narukami agreed to train today" Chie piped happily "You can-"

"NONONONONONONO!" Yosuke yelped "I still haven't regained all the feeling in my legs from that time you made me run a mile backwards!"

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad!" Chie defended

"Narukami had to carry me home!" Yosuke shot back "The look of my parents face when they opened the door to find Narukami carrying me, bridal-style!"

"I had to, you said my back was too rough for a piggyback ride" Yu explained flatly

"That's not the point!" Yosuke snapped

"Whine, whine, whine" Chie sighed as she stood up "You comin' Narukami-kun?"

Confirming her question with a small nod, he began to follow her

"Yosuke-kun" Yukiko said to get his attention

"Yeah?"

"Do you think, maybe he likes her?" Yukiko asked him, earning her a confused look from Yosuke "I mean, they _are_ spending a lot of time together"

"Chie? Come on" Yosuke laughed "They train a lot, yeah. But Narukami doesn't seem like the kinda guy who's interested in girls"

"Huh? Oh! You mean he's..." Yukiko said with a hint of revelation to her voice "Then maybe he's interested in you?"

"W-W-WHAT?! NO!" Yosuke yelped as he leapt out of his chair "What I meant was is that Narukami doesn't seem like the romantic type, and even if he is, Chie _definitely _isn't. Plus they barely know each other, Narukami hasn't even been here two weeks!"

"I suppose so...Narukami just seems to draw people towards him" Yukiko quietly noted "It's more than just his good looks, he just seems to be a person you can trust"

"_More than just his good looks_? Oh I get it" Yosuke smiled deviously "You like Narukami, don'tcha?"

"W-What?!" Yukiko gasped

"And you're jealous because of all the time he spends with Chie" He smirked

"N-No! That's not it all!" She roared as she stood up "I was just wondering is all! If him and Chie _are _dating then-"

"So you're not interested in Narukami?" Yosuke interrupted "In that case, how about me and you-"

"No"

"Figures" He sighed

* * *

**TUESDAY/ APRIL 26 2011/ SCHOOL**

"And that's why you little shits are all gonna grow up to be absolutely nothing!" Morooka roared at the class

"Here we go again" Chie sighed

"Hey, Narukami" Yosuke whisped from the desk behind "I asked around if anyone had seen Kou and Daisuke today but they all told me that no one's seen them...and not just today, for the last few days"

"Ever since they appeared on the Midnight Channel" Yu uncharacteristically growled with a clenched fist "Damn it..."

"I'm sorry man" Yosuke sighed

"Well, Hanamura, seeing as how you're so eager to talk, maybe you won't mind answering the question I just asked!" Morooka snapped

"Ah crap" Yosuke sighed before Yu slipped him the answer on a piece of paper

**AFTER SCHOOL**

"Ah man" Kondo sighed as he looked over the practically empty gym "Both Ichijo and Narukami aren't here and even Nagase is skipping out on practice"

"Actually Sensei, Narukami was here but he left just as soon as he arrived" One of the few attending member of the Basketball team noted

"I don't get why you're losing it Sensei" Another one of the players sighed "It's just practice"

"Yes, but the school that the TV crew from last week were supposed to go cancelled" Kondo explained "So they decided to come back here for a follow up"

"Seriously, we're going to be on TV again?" One piped happily

"Yes but they need an authority figure to head the report, Kou-chan was the Captain, so..." Kondo sighed as he peered over the gym before his eyes landed on a certain girl "Guess I have no choice...Oh Ebihara-chan"

**EVENING**

Yu sat alone on his couch, his room illuminated only by the street lamps outside, gazing ahead to the blank, turned off TV, which as soon as the clock hit midnight, began to flicker

"Here we go..." He mumbled as he wandered in front of the box _"Who'll appear? Kou or Daisuke?...Or both?"_

The screen remained stoic for a few more seconds before the image became clear, showing a Basketball court, illuminated by a single spot light with a lone man standing in the center

"G~ooooooood Evening!" Came the voice of the figure "I'm your Head-Captain, Kou Ichijo!"

Yu's eyes widened as the image was fully revealed, and there was Kou standing, center-court with a basketball under his left arm, and a microphone in his other. He was dressed in a professional looking jersey, complete with a sweatband around his head

"As you can see, me and the team are raring to go!" Kou declared happily as he turned around, only to be faced with the empty courtroom

"Oh yeah, that's right, I don't have anyone!" He piped in the same cheerful tone as he turned back to the camera "No one even needs me anymore!"

"What the-" Yu muttered

"Oh well, can't be helped!" Kou laughed as he spun the basketball on his finger before dribbling it between his legs "We'll be holding some auditions for the team! So come on down if you think you're good enough!"

And with that, he dribbled the Basketball down the court until he disappeared into the dark

"What the hell..." Yu mumbled as the screen faded out, his phone began to ring almost immediately afterwards, he didn't even have to check the caller I.D before answering

_"Hey, did you-" Yosuke's voice rang through the other end_

"I saw it all" Yu confirmed to him "What did he mean by _no one needs him anymore_?"

_"I got no clue...maybe it's to do with his family" Yosuke suggested "Daisuke did say that-"_

Before the two friends could continue, the familiar yellow static appeared on the TV once again

_"What the?!" Yosuke yelped "Oh crap, you don't think-"_

"Hey there, Daisuke Nagase here!"

_"Ah shi-" _

"As you can see-" Daisuke began as he trailed around what looked like a soccer stadium, illuminated by many spotlights, dressed in a professional team kit with a strange symbol of a heart being blocked out a large X on it "I'm just your perfectly ordinary gu-AHHHHHHH!"

Yu was startled by the blood curling scream that came from Daisuke's mouth, as was Yosuke judging by the large yelp that came through the phone

"A-A-A-A-A GIIIRRRLLLLLLL!"

Yu stared dumbfounded as he peered at the image, Daisuke looked in horror at what seemed to just be a cardboard cutout of a regular looking woman. Yelping as more appeared around him

"OHHHH NOOOO!" Daisuke yelled as the camera zoomed in on him, at which point, bad acting ensued "WON'T SOMEONE TAKE ME AWAY FROM THESE EVIL GIRLS?!"

_"Dude..." Yosuke quietly expressed through the phone "What the f-"_

"AHHHHHH!" Daisuke yelped as he began to run out of view "HOW WILL I EVER OVERCOME THIS FEEEAAARRRR?!"

And with that, the Midnight Channel ended

"I'm...speechless" Yu stated

_"Y-Yeah...I get what you mean" Yosuke nervously laughed "W-Well, see ya at school tomorrow, we'll meet at Junes afterwards...see ya"_

"Got it, see ya" Yu nodded as he hung up and stared at the blank TV before finally muttering his true feelings "What the hell..."

* * *

**WEDNESDAY/ APRIL 27 2011/ POLICE STATION**

"Hey there Doc" Adachi waved as he and Dojima entered the morgue

"Detective Dojima, Detective Adachi" Eiji, the aged mortician nodded

"Now that the autopsy of Saki Konishi is complete, any idea as to our culprit?" Dojima questioned

"Well that's something I need to talk to you about" Eiji sighed as he pulled the blanket off the body on the table, exposing the dead girls face

"GAH!"

"Cram it Adachi!" Dojima snapped as the young detective almost started to regurgitate

"Sadly, I was unable to find the cause of death" Eiji explained "No signs of head trauma but..."

"But what Doc?" Dojima questioned before Eiji reached down to the bottom of the blanket and began to pull it up, exposing the bruises up Saki's legs

"Bruises?" Dojima questioned

"These continue all the way up her leg and up ever further" Eiji sighed sadly "There...there are signs of sexual assault"

"Y-You mean-" Dojima began with a repulsed look on his face

"It means that she was raped before she was murdered"

"Christ" Dojima spat in disgust, for once he was couldn't blame Adachi for feeling queezy "Semen sample?"

"None I'm afraid" Eiji noted "No clothing fibers, no hairs...I'm completely in the dark here"

"Fuck" Dojima grumbled

"I'm sorry Detectives" Eiji sighed as he covered the body with the blanket once more

"It's fine Eiji" Dojima sighed as he and Adachi began to depart "Thanks for doing your best"

"Detectives!" Came the voice of a young officer as he nearly crashed into Dojima and Adachi

"What's up?" Adachi asked

"You're needed" He explained as he handed Dojima a file

"What the...shit, let's go Adachi" Dojima growled as he began to storm away

"W-Whoa, Dojima-san, wait up!" The young detective cried "What's going on?"

"You remember that politician, Taro Namatame?" Dojima asked, earning a nod from the young detective "They just found him dead"

**JUNES**

"So there's no doubt that was Ichijo and Nagase" Yosuke sighed as the gang sat around their usual table "Which means we have to go in and get them before the fog settles in"

"The question is, which one should we go for first?" Chie asked "There's no way we can go in and save them both at the same time"

"Chie's right" Yukiko nodded "We have to agree to go after one at a time"

"There's no real significance about which one we rescue first, what do you think Leader?" Yosuke asked "Which one do we go for first?"

"I don't really think I can choose" Yu informed them "It's not an easy decision"

"Fair enough, tell you what" Yosuke sighed as he stood up and pulled a coin out of his pocket "I'll flip a coin, heads we go after Ichijo, tails it's Nagase, agreed?"

After a few seconds they all nodded in agreement. Yosuke threw the coin up in the air and caught it, slamming it into his other hand, he revealed the coin and-

"Tails, looks like we're going after Nagase first" Yosuke confirmed "If we're all stocked up then let's head out"

**THE TV WORLD**

"AHHHHHH!" Teddie cried "It's you guys! I'm so glad!"

"Whoa Teddie!" Yosuke yelped as the bear wrapped around his leg "What's got you so wrapped up?!"

"It's the shadows!" The bear sobbed "They're bear-y agitated! Way more than usual!"

"Is that because there are two people in here instead of one?" Yu questioned

"Now that you mention it Sensei, I have been sensing pretty bizarre energy from multiple places" Teddie exclaimed as he let go of Yosuke, his mood immediately changing

"Geez, mood-swings much?" Yosuke grumbled

"We're sure two of our friend are in here" Chie explained "Can you sense them Teddie?"

"I sense some energy coming from two different places" The bear stated but then frowned "But...I can't narrow down where they're coming from"

"Is there anything we can do to help you locate them Teddie?" Yukiko asked

"Oh, Yukiko-chan! You're back so soon! Couldn't stay away from me, could ya?" Teddie laughed but then back down after the death glare he received with Chie "Just...just tell me something about them and maybe that will help, though it would be bear-st if you only told me about one of them so I don't get confused"

"His name's Daisuke Nagase" Yu began "He plays Soccer and is...to put it blunt, has a phobia of women"

"Phobia of women...soccer" Teddie began to concentrate and then popped up happily "I found him! Follow me!"

"W-Whoa!" Yosuke yelped as the large area came into view

"Is...Is this a soccer stadium?" Chie asked as they approached the large dome "Whoa, I've never actually seen a huge arena like this before"

"I have" Yu noted "My dad used to take me to a big arena like this to watch baseball, but that place wasn't as big as this"

"Man, haven't seen one of these in a long time" Yosuke said in awe "You're positive he's in here Teddie?"

"Positive, top floor!" Teddie confirmed

"Top floor? I was hoping it was like an actual stadium where all we had to do was make our way to the center and end up on the field" Yukiko sighed

"Who the hell builds a soccer field on the top floor of a building?" Yosuke groaned "Well, no sense whining about it about it, come on"

"Let's go" Yu nodded as the four friends and Teddie headed towards the entrance

**MIDNIGHT PITCH, FLOOR 1**

"Whoa, what is this place?" Yosuke asked as they ended up in a backstage-like environment with long grey hallways and multiple doors

"It's just like an actual arena" Yu noted

_**"Hey there, welcome to the show!"**_

"Is that Nagase-kun's voice?" Yukiko asked

_**"I'm the star player, Daisuke Nagase!" **__The voice boomed once more __**"But we're all sold out, so I'm afraid you're gonna have to turn back"**_

"How many floors Teddie?" Yu asked

"I'm sensing nine" The bear noted before a he jolted "B-But there's a bunch of shadows in the way!"

"Figures" Yosuke sighed as he drew his twin naito "Alright everyone, let's get going"

**FLOOR 2**

"Man..." Yosuke sighed as they finally ascended the staircase to the next floor "I can't believe I'm this beat after just one floor..."

"Tell me about it" Chie groaned "It's probably because we're just a few days removed from saving Yukiko"

"This isn't good" Yu grumbled as he too struggled up the staircase, despite the hoard of Shadows, he was not able to gain any more Persona's "We can't do this now..."

"Maybe it's best if we head back" Yukiko sighed "It's no use struggling up these floors in the condition we're in now"

"I agree" Yu nodded "Teddie?"

"Understood" The bear nodded as it pulled out a Goho-M

**NAMATAME HOME**

"Hanged?" Dojima asked

"Found him dangling from the roof with a noose around his neck" The investigator stated as he handed Dojima the report

"Well..." Adachi sighed with a rub of his head "Maybe Namatame did murder the Amano lady after all and-"

"Guilt caught up to him or he feared he'd be caught and he'd rather off himself than spend time for his crimes" Dojima sighed "But you may just be jumping to conclusions. Maybe Namatame couldn't take the pressure anymore. All the press about his affair coupled with the accusations of murder...maybe that's why he killed himself"

"Are we sure this is suicide?" Adachi asked, causing Dojima to raise an eyebrow "Let's face it, Namatame was Prime Suspect #1. If the real murderer took him out, he could get off because the police are trying to prove that a dead guy is behind his crimes"

"That's...how did you even come up with that?" Dojima asked

"Well my job as a police officer is to consider every possibility" Adachi smiled as he ruffled his hair "But...that look...Dojima-san, do you have someone in mind too?"

"What do you mean?" The detective asked

"You always strain your eyebrows when your deep in thought" Adachi smirked

"It's just...it's..." Dojima sighed before his eyes fell to his feet "You know my Nephew moved in with me recently?"

"Oh yeah, your sisters kid, you mentioned him a few times" Adachi nodded "What abou-...wait, Dojima-san?"

Dojima's eyes drifted to his detective partner, a look of guilt and shame in them

"Whoa, hold up, you think he's the one behind this?!" Adachi cried, catching the attention of the other officers at the scene

"You just said it, it's our job as police officers to consider every possibility" Dojima grumbled "And I'm not accusing him of anything, I'm just saying it's possible, the murders started just after he arrived and there was that weapons incident at Junes"

"Dojima-san, This kid's what? 15? 16?" Adachi asked "He's in High-School and if he's related to you, I seriously doubt the kid has any criminal record so how could he be the one?"

"It's just an assumption" Dojima sighed "And besides, what's got you so worked up? Why are you going to such lengths to defend him?"

"I...I...just" Adachi sighed sadly "Seeing people getting falsely accused of stuff they didn't do.. the reason I became a cop was to prevent crap like that"

Dojima stared in near-awe at the young detective, seeing the somewhat pained look on his face, Dojima felt a new side of Adachi he had never expected to see

"Adachi, I-"

"Ah hell, it's the media" Came the groan of another detective

"Shit" Dojima grumbled

**EVENING**

"That was stupid" Yosuke grumbled as he and the others exited Junes "We went in way too soon..."

"We barely even had a week to recover from saving Yukiko" Chie sighed "We need some time to recover"

"I checked the weather report on my phone, it's raining tonight but there's no fog due anytime soon" Yukiko explained "So there's no need for us to rush in"

"This is all because I wanted to save them right away" Yu sighed in disappointment "I pushed you all too far"

"Hey, hey partner, no need to be so hard on yourself" Yosuke said with a pat on Yu's shoulder "This was a mutual agreement, we all got in over our heads. No need to beat yourself up"

"Yeah, don't be so hard on yourself" Chie said with a smile of encouragement

"We're all in this together" Yukiko smiled "But what's best for all of us right now is to get some rest before we try again"

"Yeah, thank you" Yu nodded as the gang began to split ways

"See you tomorrow at school" Chie waved

"Bye" Yukiko waved too

Yu waved back to his friends as they departed, he turned around, only to find that Yosuke had yet to move

"Alright, time for a straight up answer" Yosuke declared "Chie or Yukiko, which one's your type?"

"W-What?" Yu stuttered "Why...why are you asking me that?"

"Come on man" Yosuke laughed as he slung his arm around a confused Yu "You can tell me"

"W-What?"

"Yukiko brought up how much time you've been spending with Chie and now that I think about it, you're spending a lot of time with a certain future inn owner" Yosuke chuckled "But you can't have both! I won't allow it! You may be my friend but I won't tolerate you two-timing them!"

"Y-Yosuke?" Yu asked in confusion

"Come on man, trust me, I won't tell them, bro's before ho's!...D-Don't tell them I said that"

"I'm not attracted to either of them" Yu explained "They're both my friends"

"Huh? Really?" Yosuke sneered "Not even Yukiko? Dude, everyone's got a crush on her"

"Well...they're both attractive in their own ways" Yu explained "But right now, I'm just that _into _them that way"

"Well...you've barely been here a few weeks, I'm sure you'll eventually fall for Yukiko like the rest of us" Yosuke sighed as he removed his arm from Yu and began to depart "See ya"

"See ya" Yu responded as he watched his friend depart and then proceeded to shuffle his way home

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE **

"Oh, welcome back" Nanako smiled as Yu entered the home

"Hey" Yu greeted as he removed his shoes, The venture in TV had left him exhausted, to the point where all he wanted to do was lay in bed "I'm heading up to my room"

"Okay" Nanako nodded as he began to ascend the staircase, her eyes still aimed at the TV

_"It's not known if Mr. Namatame's death is linked to the current serial murder case that has claimed the lives of Mayumi Amano, a former announcer at this very station and Saki Konishi, a young girl who attended Yasogami High School. It has been deemed unlikely as despite his connection with Miss Amano, the circumstances of his death do not match the previous two murders_

_We'll have more on this story at 11. Now for these messages"_

Nanako stared at the TV in delight as her favorite ad came on

"~Everyday's great at your Junes!~" She sang

* * *

**THURSDAY/ APRIL 28/ SCHOOL**

"You as exhausted as I am?" Yosuke asked

"As soon as I got home, I hit the sheets" Yu yawned "It really was dumb of us to go in that soon"

"Tell me about it" Yosuke droned

"I feel like I'd have a join a second club just to stay awake" Yu groaned

"Heh, good one" Yosuke chuckled

"Yeah Narukami, good one" Came the hateful spite of Morooka as he appeared beside the two boys "As a matter of fact, it was so good that it reminded me that the culture clubs have less the required members, get on that"

"Whoa, wait!" Yosuke snapped "You can't make him do that!"

"You back talking me Hanamura?!" Morooka snapped "That's it, just for that, YOU'RE joining a club too!"

"I'm what?!" He spluttered

"Practice building, first floor, CHOP CHOP!" He snapped, both boys audibly groaned as they pulled themselves out of their seats "COME ON! BEFORE I EXPEL YOU BOTH!"

"Hey, where are you guys going?" Chie asked as she entered the classroom just as the two departed

"Ask King Moron" Yosuke grumbled

"So...drama and music" Yosuke noted as he and Narukami observed the two doors "One club each?"

"One each" Yu nodded "Which one do you want?"

"Preferably neither" Yosuke groaned

"I can't say I'm too thrilled about this either" Yu sighed "But we have to pick one"

The two boys stared intently at each other before Yosuke came to a conclusion

"Pick a number between one and ten" Yosuke stated

"Huh?"

"Just do it" Yosuke commanded

"U-uhh seven?" Yu stuttered

"Right, one to five was drama, six to ten was music" Yosuke began

"What're you-?" Yu began

"You chose seven, which was music...so-" Yosuke explained as he drew back his hand "Winner gets music"

...

"Agreed" Yu nodded as he too pulled back his hand

_"Rock"_

_"__**Paper**__"_

_**"SCISSORS!**__"_

...

"Rock beats scissors" Yosuke smiled

"Oh well..." Yu sighed as he proceeded towards the drama class

"Heh" Yosuke chuckled before the smile dropped "Wait, why am I happy about this?"

Yosuke sighed, his feeling on the subject were all over the place as he began to reach for the door

Only for it to open and someone to crash into him

"AH!" Came the cry of a small girl as she collided with Yosuke's chest "Oh...s-sorry about that"

"It's no big deal" Yosuke said, hiding his pain and smiling at the girl who he noted had short black hair and rosy red cheeks "I-I'm actually here to join the band"

"Oh, okay" She nodded "Come in"

"Everyone, this is Yosuke Hanamura" The Band Captain introduced "He's a second year so let's all give him a warm welcome"

_"Welcome!" _The band members greeted in unison

"So, Yosuke, you play any instruments?" The Band Captain asked

"W-Well...some" Yosuke said a rub of his head

"Yeah? So why did you decide to join?" The Captain asked

"Honestly? I was roped into this by King Moron" Yosuke sighed

"Well that's alright, we take 'em where we can get em, we're not that good anyway" The Captain shrugged "Club days are Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays and hey, Ayane!"

"Y-Yes?" The small girl stuttered

"Why don't you introduce yourself to Hanamura?"

"Umm, er, my name is Ayane Matsunaga. I'm a first-year." The Small girl explained "I-I play the trombone. And, uh..."

"Alright, she'll get you brought up to speed. If you'll excuse me..." The Band Captain cut her off "Bring it in, guys. Break's over. Let's take it from the top again."

**DRAMA**

"You're Yu, from second year? The transfer student, right?" A Male student asked "I see, I see. Welcome to the drama club! I'm the club president Nagai. And this is-"

"I'm Yumi Ozawa" The girl standing next to him greeted "I'm a second year, same as you. It's nice to meet you"

"Yumi, are you trying to get your hooks into the new guy already?" A suspicious student questioned

"Huh? Not in the slightest" Was her blunt reply "Anyway, let's continue practicing"

"We don't have a stage or anything fancy like that or ever a script, so we're just training. I'm sure you'll catch on, Club days are Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. We're not going to throw you out if you miss a session but please try to come as often as you can" A young girl standing next to Nagai explained

"Understood" Yu nodded

"Oh yeah, I'm the clubs Vice President" She introduced "I'm not really much help, though"

"Don't say that Mi-tan, I know you put a lot of effort into it. Besides, you're so cute" Nagai beamed

"D-Don't call me Mi-tan in front of everyone!" She spluttered

"Narukami-Kun" Yumi addressed, snapping him out of his trance "Forget about them, let's practice. We'll start with vocal lessons"

"O-Oh, Senpai... You're still here?" Ayane asked Yosuke "It's okay, you can go home!"

"Well actually, I-" He began

"Oh... I'm sorry! I was supposed to give you the details on our club, wasn't I?" Ayane panicked "Umm, we meet on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays... er, they already told you that, huh."

"Yeah" Yosuke chuckled "But I'm actually still hanging around since my buddy is still in drama"

"O-Oh" Ayane understood "W-Well We don't take attendance, so you don't have to come if you don't want to. But practice makes perfect, so...If you keep at it, this is a great way to learn to express yourself! Though... I'm not the best example of that..."

"It's alright, honestly it doesn't seem that bad" Yosuke smiled

"D-Do you have any questions, Senpai?" Ayane asked

"Where exactly do we play?"

"Well, sometimes we play in hospitals and Senior homes..." She explained

"Oh..." Yosuke sighed

"We aren't a big enough band to enter any competitions...But people enjoy our performances. We really pour our hearts into the music. Well... I say _we_, but I don't usually play. I take care of all the paperwork around here." Ayane explained "A-Anyway, I have to tidy up. Why don't you go on ahead, Senpai?"

"That looks a like a pretty big task for just one person" Yosuke noted "I'll help out"

"Huh?" Ayane yelped in surprise "Oh...umm...t-thank you"

"That's right, focus on your stomach" Yumi encouraged "Push the air out and now say _Ahh_!"

"Ahh!"

"Good, you've gotten a lot better in such a small amount of time" She smiled before noting that they were the only ones in the room "Huh? Is school over? Everyone's gone?! I didn't even notice"

"I did" He nodded

"I'll see you next time. Come to practice okay?" Yumi asked

"Okay" Yu confirmed

"I'm glad to see you can take orders" Yumi smiled cheerfully "Well, fate must've brought us here, so lets make the best with what we have"

Yu nodded once again, feeling the beginning of a bond with Yumi

"I'll be going now, take care" Yumi said as she departed

"Yo" Yosuke said as he peeked his head in the door "You ready to go?"

"Yeah" Yu nodded as he exited the room

"Well, I'll be honest, that wasn't as bad as I thought" Yosuke shrugged

"Yeah" Yu nodded "Honestly, it was somewhat enjoyable, but we can't let it distract us from our current goal"

"Yeah, plus Golden Week is just around the corner so we can't get distracted" Yosuke agreed "Do you think it's safe to go in tomorrow?"

"As long as we don't push it" Yu informed him "We're still not too far removed from saving Yukiko, we don't want to wear our bodies out"

* * *

**FRIDAY/APRIL 29/AFTER SCHOOL**

**MIDNIGHT PITCH, FLOOR 3**

"HHHHHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-YAH!" Chie roared as her boot smashed a shadow into oblivion

"Nice, Chie!" Yosuke laughed before slashing one of his Naito through a shadows neck

"Izanagi, Zio!" Yu cried as he summoned his Persona with its lightning blast frying the nearby shadows

"Konohana-Sak..." Yukiko began but then began to feel feint

"Yukiko, try not to overexert yourself" Chie warned with a concerned voice "You're still not 100%..."

"Chie's right Yukiko" Yosuke agreed as he and Yu finally cleared out the rest of the Shadow's "We appreciate all the help you've given but you're pushing yourself too far"

"I can still..." She groaned "I-"

"No buts, you're still not ready" Chie told her and she placed her hand on Yukiko's shoulder, as the two watched Yu and Yosuke deal with the remaining shadows

"I'm sorry, I'm just being a burden" She sighed "You, Yosuke and Narukami-kun all have expierence, I'm just in the way right now..."

"It's not like that, I just said you haven't completely recovered" Chie groaned

"I should just go and leave it all to you three" Yukiko sighed sadly

"We're heading back anyway" Yosuke explained as he and Yu approached the pair

"Huh? Wh-Narukami-kun!" Yukiko yelped as the boy was clutching his arm, blood leaking down and dripping off his fingers

"It's nothing" He stated in his usual flat tone "A shadow just got lucky, that's all"

"It's not nothing, you're bleeding!" Chie snapped at him "Lose the tough guy act, will ya?"

"Dia" Yukiko chanted as her Persona appeared before her and a pool of green energy wrapped around Yu's arm, healing the wound

"We're all pretty beat, plus with Narukami's injury..." Yosuke sighed

"I'll be fine when it's healed" Yu explained

"Like I said bro, we're all beat" Yosuke groaned "You may have some superhuman endurance, but think of the rest of us, will ya?"

"I see...I'm sorry" Yu said with a look of shame "I put you all in danger, I'm just selfi-"

"Hey, knock it off" Chie said comfortingly to calm him down "We all agreed to head in today, hell, we managed to cover two floors in one day, I'd say that's pretty good!"

"Yeah, can't have our leader getting all moapy, can we?" Yosuke laughed, causing a small smile to appear on Yu's face

**EVENING/DOJIMA RESIDENCE **

_"Due to the weekend rainfall, clear skies seem unlikely in the area. Although, no fog is to be found the area, unlike the last few weeks. Now for the hourly weather breakdown"_

Dojima, Nanako and Yu all sat in silence, staring at the TV

"No fog, huh? That's a welcome change" Dojima noted

_Click_

"Ah-ah-ah, what did I say about changing the channel without asking first?" He scolded Nanako

_"Have a great day this Golden Week, your local Junes is open as always! Come see for yourself and get in touch with our products! _

_~Everyday's great at your Junes!~"_

"~Everyday's great at your Junes!~" Nanako sang before turning to her father "Dad! They're going to be open during Golden Week!"

"I heard" Dojima chuckled "Do you want to go somewhere during the long holiday?"

"We can go somewhere?" Nanako yelped happily

"How about it?" Dojima asked his Nephew "Got any plans yet?"

_"I can't adandon Kou and Daisuke..." Were his dreaded thoughts_

"I was actually going to spend some time with some friends" He explained, not totally lying

"Y-You're not coming?" Nanako asked sadly, a small piece of Yu's heart breaking upon seeing the expression of the young girls face

"I see, well that's alright" Dojima nodded "But hey, be careful, I'm sure you've heard that two kids from your school went missing recently"

"Yeah, Kou Ichijou and Daisuke Nagase" He nodded, earning a strange look from Dojima "We're on the basketball team together"

"Oh yeah, that's right" Dojima remembered but then shot him another look "Come to think of it, you mentioned that you sit near the Amagi girl, the last kidnap victim-"

_"Seeing people getting falsely accused of stuff they didn't do...the reason I became a cop was to prevent crap like that" Adachi's words rang in his head_

"Are you two fighting?" Nanako pouted

"No, no" Dojima laughed as he turned to his nephew "Relax, I'm not accusing you of anything"

The relieved smile that came across from Yu brought forth a laugh from Dojima

"C'mon! Let's all go somewhere together!" Nanako piped, trying to change her cousin's mind before she danced happily "Junes! Junes! Junes Junes Junes!"

"You're sure you want to go to Junes? We can go there anytime" Dojima questioned with a raised eyebrow before he noticed the time "Come on girl, It's time for bed"

"Alright" She said sadly before she began to wander to her room before she began to sing happily "~Everyday's great at your Junes!~"

* * *

**SATURDAY/APRIL 30/JUNES FOODCOURT**

"Man, talk about great timing, we just started serving grilled steak today" Yosuke chuckled as he placed the food on the table "We're doing our best to spread our town's speciality dish, plus we have an excellent grill"

"That's just a Yakisoba griddle" Chie glared "But oh well, steak is steak...it's far from a filet steak though...Yukiko, are you okay with this? It's not too heavy for you is it?"

"I'll eat it...I'm still mad though" She grumbled, shooting an uncharasmatic glare at Narukami

"Yeah, I thought it was common manners not to eat other peoples food" Chie said with an equal glare to Yosuke

"H-Hey, shaddup, I bought you steak!" Yosuke yelped

"Yeah, because you ate my soba!" She growled

"And because _you _ate my fried tofu" Yukiko spat at Narukami

"So back on topic, I wonder what kind of person the culprit is" Chie began

"If you focus just on the announcers case, it seems like a revenge thing, it could of been her lovers wife" Yosuke added

"But Misuzu Miiragi had a solid alibi, didn't she? And her and her husband were already seperated anyway..." Chie countered

"Really? You seem to know a lot about this" Yosuke noted "Okay, what about the second case, Saki-senpai, she found the body. Assuming the same person killed them, why go after Senpai?"

"It was to shut her up" Yu explained "She knew something about the case..."

"Yeah, I think so too..." Yosuke agreed

"But the killer just threw the announcer into the TV, right?" Yukiko questioned "I don't think they would have left evidence the police-much less a high school studen-could catch"

"Yeah, you've got a point there..." Yosuke sighed

_"Man, I thought the countryside would be a snooze but it's proving to be a lot more exciting than I thought...ooh! They updated the menu!"_

"Hey, isn't he that detective?" Chie questioned as the group spotted the owned of the farmiliar voice

"Hey!" Adachi piped as he spotted Yu "You were at Dojima-san's pla-Oh! I-I'm not followin' you or anything, in fact, this is great timing! Dojima-san said he'll be leaving work on schedule tonight, so pass that along to Nanako-chan, will you?"

"I will" He nodded

"Oh yeah, I'm Adachi" He introduced himself "I'm Dojima-san's gofer...I-I mean partner"

"Are you this busy everyday?" Yosuke chuckled

"Huh? Oh, well the public seems to be getting a kick outta of these cases but we can't leave it at that..."

"Sorry for butting in, but is it possible the killer targeted Saki-senpai in order to silence her?" Chie asked

"U-Umm...wow, you really get to the heart of the matter, yeesh..." Adachi chuckled "Of course we're thinking along those lines, she _was_ killed right after the announcer's body was found. If the killer was trying to silence her, it may be because there was something about the scene of the crime that only she could understand, which means the culprit may have been close to Ms. Konishi. Nothing like that points to Misuzu Hiiragi, however she just jumped up pretty high in the suspect poll thanks to her husbands death..."

"W-Wait, what?" Yosuke stuttered "That poltician, the one Ms. Amano was having an affair with is dead?"

"O-Oh crap, me and my big mouth!" Adachi yelped "Don't tell anyone I said that, please? Dojima-san will flay me alive..."

All four members of the investigation team watched in bewilderment as Adachi scampered away

"That politician, Taro Namatame" Yu muttered "If I'm to be honest, he would have seemed like a very likely canidate"

"Yeah, I mean I think everybody suspected either him or his wife..." Chie noted "Ms. Hiiragi is looking pretty suspicious right no-Ah! My steak's getting cold!"

"Could you shut up about the steak for five seconds?" Yosuke growled

**EVENING/DOJIMA RESIDENCE **

"The 4th and the 5th..." Dojima announced, earning him confused looks from Yu and Nanako "I may be able to get the 4th and the 5th off"

"Really?!" Nanako gasped as she shot up but then slowly retreated down "...Really?"

"What? You don't believe me?" Dojima asked

"It's always cancelled" Nanako pouted

"N-Not every year" Dojima protested with a hint of shame "I know you wanted to go to Junes, but I was think somewhere else a little further out of the neighborhood"

"Really? Can we go on a trip?" Nanako asked, the excitement returning to her voice

"Well...I suppose it's good to go on a trip once in a while" Dojima chuckled "I'm sure it'll be crowded everywhere though..."

"Yaaay! We're going on a trip!" Nanako cheered

"Okay, now we just need to think of somewhere to go..." Dojima pondered before turning to his nephew "What about you, you wanna ta-oh wait, you have plans, don't you? Don't let us get in the way of them"

"Come with us!" Nanako pouted

"Now Nanako, he's got his own things to do" Dojima informed her "I'm sure he would rather hang out with his friend than with us two"

"Wait, no" Yu began to explain "It's not like that"

"Relax, I'm just teasing you" Dojima laughed

"I might be able to come along" Yu noted, instantly changing Nanako's expression "It all depends on whether or not I can get something done in the next few days"

"You can come?! Yaaaay!" She cheered once again "Let's bring boxed lunches!"

"You know I'm not good at cooking" Dojima sighed before once again turning to Yu "Well, I guess that's why we have you around, huh?"

"Eh?"

"Yaaay! Boxed lunches!" Nanako cheered, earning a laugh from Dojima and Yu

* * *

**SUNDAY/MAY 1/MORNING**

_"Do you think we're ready to go back in?"_

"I don't know Chie" Yu sighed though the phone "We've really been pushing it, going in so soon after Yukiko's incident"

_"Yeah, plus Yukiko is nowhere near ready..." Chie sighed back "But Golden Week is coming up, so we'll have plenty of time"_

"Yeah, about that..." Yu sighed as he rubbed his temples "I think I'm actually being roped away on a family trip

_"Huh? A family trip? Well it is Golden Week after all..."_

"I think if I don't go, Nanako will get upset" Yu explained

_"Ah, I see..." Chie said understandingly "Hey, if you're not doing anything, you wanna train today?"_

"How about we just take an off day and just hang out?"

_"H-Huh, just the two of us?" _

"Yeah sure, though I could invite the others if you want" Yu added

_"N-No, that's okay, how about we go see a movie?"_

"Sure, then how about I treat you to some steak skewers?" Yu laughed

_"You know me so well..." She chuckled "I'll meet you by Aiya in about 15, kay?"_

"Got it" He said as he hung up the phone and proceeded to head down the stairs

"Heading out?" Came a voice from the couch

"Uncle?" Yu questioned

"Yeah, late start, I know" Dojima chuckled "Heading out with your friends?"

"Just the one, we're going to see a movie" He explained "I need to meet her in the shopping district in about 15 minutes"

"Her? Ah, so you have a date?" Dojima chuckled "You haven't even been here a month and you're already got yourself a girlfriend"

"I-I wouldn't call it a date" Yu stuttered "W-We're just hanging out"

"Is it just the two of you?"

"Well...yeah, but it doesn't mean anything!" Yu explained

"Alright, alright, alright" Dojima laughed "I'm just teasing, come on, I'll drop you off"

**EVENING**

"Ahhhh~" Chie sighed in delight "That hit the spot!"

"Glad you're full" Yu smirked "'Cause my wallet is empty"

"Ah, don't be like that" Chie laughed

...

"I really like spending time with you" Yu said out of the blue

"O-Oh?" Chie stuttered, her cheeks turning a hint of red "I-I...thanks"

"I've never really had friends like you guys" Yu said with a smile as his eyes turned to the table "I've...I've always..."

"Narukami-kun?"

"Yu"

"Huh?"

"Call me Yu" He requested

"W-Woah, are you sure?" She stuttered "I mean...we've only known each other a few weeks and-"

"Sure, I mean I've been calling you Chie this whole time and not Satonaka-san" Yu smiled "It's only right, you're my friend"

"H-How about I just call you Yu-kun?" Chie requested with a small laugh

"That's fine" he smiled "I should probably stop by and tell the others the same thing"

"Naruk...Yu-kun...you were saying that you were always...something...?" Chie noted, urging him to continue

...

"Do you know the reason I hang out with you guys at every oppurtunity? Why I joined the basketball club and didn't even protest when King Moron made me join a second club" Yu questioned her, earning a shake of her head "I'm...lonely"

"Eh?" She yelped in surprise

"My parents would always be to busy with work, and we moved around a lot. I almost never saw them and I never had any time to make friends" He said with a look of longing in his eyes "I was alone...every single day...I never had friends and I had no place that felt like home"

"Yu-kun..."

"But...being here...even though I know it's just been a few weeks and I'm here because of their work, I feel like I belong here" He said with a sad smile "And you Chie..."

"Me?" Chie questioned

"That day when you saved me from the mouthing from King Moron and asked if I wanted to walk home with you...it finally felt like I starting to make a connection"

Chie could only look at her friends solemn face, her heart tugged as he witnessed the look of hurt in his eyes

"I guess..." He said as he dipped his head down before lifting his head so his eyes met Chie's "You were my first friend Chie..."

...

"Yu-kun... are you...crying?"

"No" He sighed with a quick wipe of his eyes "I'm not...some of the spices from your streak went in my eyes"

The two stared at each others sullen faces before they slowly burst into laughter, earning him looks from the other patrons

"Sorry, I got a little depressing there" Yu chuckled

"No, no, it's fine" Chie said with a large smile that soon dissolved into a smaller one "You know...for a long time, all I had was Yukiko, you and Yosuke were really my first guy friends...and that's good...I want to be more than just the girl who looks out for Yukiko...I'm glad I met Teddie too, big of a perv' as he is..."

"Yeah..." Yu smiled "I'm glad it was just the two of us today..."

"Yeah, me too" Chie also smiled with a slight blush

...

"It's getting late" Yu noted

"Yeah, we should be heading back" She agreed "Today was nice, Narukami-kun"

"Yu"

"Yu-kun" Chie laughed "That's going to take getting used to..."

**LATER THAT EVENING/DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

_"An Inaba Credit Union ATM to the north of the town was destroyed today by an earth mover, all money inside was reportidly stolen. The vehicle, which was abandoned at the scene, was reported stolen by a local contractor. Since the culprit was able to act quickly before the security guards arrived on the scene, the police have-"_

"Dad's late..." Nanako muttered

"He was late this morning too..." Yu noted "He's probably just making up for lost time"

_RIIIIIIIIIIIING_

The loud ring from the phone distracted the two children from their conversation, Nanako proceeded to quietly shuffle her way over

"Dojima residence...Hello, dad? Yeah I'm okay"

...

"Yeah...yeah...okay"

Yu cringed slightly at Nanako's tone, he had a gut feeling that he knew the reason why Dojima was calling...

"Alright" She muttered softly as she walked over to Yu and handed him the phone "He wants to talk to you"

"He can't take those days off" She mumbled and Yu couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl. He briefly considered telling her how sorry he was, but judging by the fact that he wasn't tagging along anyway, he figured it would be best if he didn't

"Uncle?" He said into the phone

_"Hello? Sorry, but I'm going to be late tonight. Make sure you lock up before you go to sleep tonight" Dojima explained "And about those days off on the 4th and the 5th...one of the younger guys got sick...and that case he's handing is one we can't let sit...looks like I'm the only one who can take over for him"_

"I see...that's too bad" Yu noted

_"I'm sorry to spring this on you all of a sudden...how's Nanako holding up?"_

"She looked dissapointed" He explained

_"I can't blame her...do you mind comforting her?"_

"No problem"

_"So...I gotta know before I hang up, how did your date go?" He laughed_

"It went fine...and it wasn't a date" Yu chuckled

_"Proper ladies man" He laughed "You're just like your father, you-_

_..._

_I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean"_

"No...it's fine" Yu said quietly

_"I'm sorry I brought that up" Dojima apologized "I gotta get back to work now"_

"I understand, goodbye" Yu nodded

_"See you..."_

Hanging up the phone and returning it to it's rightful place, he stared down the hall and eyed the door belonging to Nanako

He ultimately figured it would be best if he just left her alone...

Recalling that midterms started the following Monday, he figured he would study and then go to sleep. He would need all his strength for tomorrow

* * *

**TUESDAY/ MAY 2/ MIDNIGHT PITCH, FLOOR 5**

"I sense something very powerful behind this door" Teddie trembled "Be _Bear_y careful sensei"

"Are we all ready?" Yu asked his companions

"I feel kinda nervous doing this without Yukiko..." Yosuke noted the lack of their fourth companion "She is kinda the healer afterall..."

"It's too dangerous for her, you know she hasn't completely recovered yet" Chie stated "It's safer if it's just the three of us"

"If you say so" Yosuke noted before turning to Yu "It's time, you ready leader?"

"Let's go" He nodded as he pushed open the door

And standing there in the center of the room was Daisuke, as well as a gigantic shadow behind him

"Daisuke!" Yu shouted as he stormed into the room, followed by the others

"Wait, Narukami!" Yosuke shouted

"Glad to see you all made it" Daisuke smirked "Even the-AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! GIRL!"

"Huh?" Chie sounded

"N-N-N-NO! YOU STAY AWAY FROM ME YOU SHE-DEVIL!" He shrieked before turning to the Shadow "You! Take care of them!"

The three stared dumbfounded as the as Daisuke comedically scattered away, which left them alone with the Shadow

"Careful Sensei! That's a _Mad Cyclops_!" Teddie explained as they gazed at the humanoid-like ogre chained upside down to a gigantic wheel.

"There's only way we're getting past this thing" Yosuke stated he spun his Naito around his fingers "Let's do this Partner!"

"Come, Izanagi!" He roared as he sliced the Tarot card in front of him

"Jiraiya!" Yosuke shouted as he sliced his card.

The creature slashed away at the two with one of it's chained arms, narrowly missing Yosuke's arm.

"Garu!" Yosuke yelled as he fired the blast of wind at the shadow, managing to nudge it back

"Tomoe, Bufu!" Chie shouted as her Persona froze the base of the shadow to the ground "Go, leader!"

"Zio!" Yu shouted as his Persona closed in on the foe

"S-Sensei!" Teddie yelped "G-Get back! It's going to attack!"

"Izanagi, get back!" Yu commanded just as the cyclops spat out a massive burst of fire, scolding the boys right arm

"Narukami!" Yosuke cried out as he ran to his side and the farmiliar healing energy wrapped around his arm "Sorry, I'm not as good as Yukiko at this..."

"It's alright" Yu confided through clenched teeth as his burning flesh was repaired. He gazed as Chie attempted to fight back against the monster but her Ice was ineffective

"Awuahh! Chie-chan is in danger!" Teddie cried out

"We can see that!" Yosuke yelled as he ran back into action "Jiraiya, Sonic Punch!"

Yosuke's Persona flew forward, its fist knock the shadow back a few feet but it would recover before it even hit the ground

"Izanagi, cleave!" Yu shouted as his Persona bashed against the shadow, he took this oppertunity to summon one of his several other Persona's "Eligor!"

Izanagi proceeded to disappear in a flash of light and in its place was the knight on horseback

"Agi!" Yu cried out as the Persona summoned a blast of fire, which was instantly extinguished by the cyclops large Bufu "Damn it, he can use Ice and fire?"

"Change, Ghoul!" Yu shouted once more as his newest Persona emerged "Poison skewer!"

The shadow, despite its large size continued to dodge Yu's strikes. However it provided and ample oppertuinity for a sneak attack from Yosuke, who proceeded to stab the being in the neck with one of his Naito.

Unfortunately for him, just as he began to celebrate, the shadow span around, sending Yosuke flying off him and into a wall

"Yosuke!" Chie cried out

"Damn...it" Yosuke groaned as he slumped to the ground

"Izanagi!" Yu roared once again "Zio!"

The lightning stuck the yet-to recover cyclops, causing it to stumble back. Yu saw this as an oppertunity to attack and thrusted his katana through the shadows gut. But even then, the shadow still appeared to be going

"Hi-yah!" Chie screamed as she landed a devasting jumping kick to shadow, knocking it further back but not quite toppling it "Tomoe, Skull Cracker!"

Her Persona began to spin her blade around overhead before slamming it directly into the shadow. Despite their best efforts, the shadow was still standing

"Garu!" Yosuke roared as he clambered back to his feet and Jiraiya appeared and summoned a blast of wind strong enough to finally topple the beast

"Alright! This is our chance!" Chie yelled "Let's do this!"

"Right!" Yu and Yosuke nodded in unison and they and Chie rushed in before the shadow could recover.

What followed was a long series of slashes, kicks and stabs, that by the end of their attack, the shadow was no more

"Finally..." Yosuke sighed before clutching his back "Damn, that hurt!"

"Can't you just heal yourself?" Chie groaned

"What're you talk-oh wow, I can totally just heal myself, can't I?"

Chie merely sighed as Yosuke used Dia to mend his aching back, she proceeded to turn to Yu was still noticably clutching his arm

"Last time we were here, you got your arm sliced open, this time burned" She said with a small chuckle "Some luck you got there"

"Same arm too, maybe I'm cursed" He said with a small laugh as he observed the small burn still present

"It's still there? Geez, Yosuke! Your healing sucks!" Chie yelled

"Well excuse me!" Yosuke spat "I kinda had to jump back into action since you were in danger!"

"I wasn't in danger!" Chie snapped back and thus began another spat between the two

"Teddie" Yu said to the bear

"Right" He nodded as he pulled out a Goho-M

* * *

**WEDNESDAY/ MAY 3/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

Yu laid on his bed, his arm fully healed from the day he and the others confronted the cyclops. Given the start of Golden Week, he didn't have to worry about school so instead he figured to just go down the stairs

"Oh, morning" Nanako greeted him before her head turned back to the TV. Before both her and Yu's attention was grabbed by the doorbell. Confused as to why someone would be ringing it this early. Yu walked over and opened the door to the Dojima house, finding Chie on the other side

"Oh cool, you're home!" Chie yelped in glee

"H-How did you know where I lived?" Yu asked, genuinely confused

"Oh I just had to ask a few housewives where Dojima-san's house was" She explained "Anyway, if you're free today, wanna go somewhere? Yukiko's coming too"

It was then that he spotted the little girl behind him

"Oh, this must be Nanako-chan! Do you want to come along too?"

"U-Um..." The little girl stuttered

"Yeah, come with us" Yu suggested with a genuine smile "Or would you rather keep watching TV?"

"N-No, I'll come" She said as she quickly skipped to get her shoes

"Thanks for inviting her along" Yu smiled at Chie

"Well you mentioned that she's alone here all the time, and if she's lonely like you were..." She said awkwardly as she remembered Yu's words from a few days ago

"Thanks Chie, I'm glad I told you that" Yu once again shot her a smile "I'll be honest, I was fully expecting you to make fun of me when I told you"

"W-Wha?! I'd do never do that!" She yelped with a small jab at his arm

"Okay! Okay! Ow..." He chuckled as he rubbed the spot she hit "Did you have to hit the exact spot I got burned a few days ago?"

"A-Ah, sorry..." Chie apologized

**JUNES**

"Why'd you bring poor Nanako-chan to a place like this on Golden Week?" Yosuke questioned her

"Where else is open?" Chie questioned back

"I love Junes!" The young girl piped happily

"N-Nanako-chan!" Yosuke gasped in surprise as his eyes began to water

"Okay, seriously?" Chie grumbled

"But we were supposed to go on a real trip somewhere" Nanako said, her tone shifting to one of dissapointment "We were going to make boxed lunches..."

"Wow! You can make boxed lunches Nanako-chan?" Yukiko asked in surprise, the young girl shook her head and pointed to her older cousin

"Oh, so you're the family cook? Pretty impressive _big bro_!" Chie giggled

"Big...bro..." Nanako repeated

"Whoa, you can cook?" Yosuke asked in surprise "Well you do seem to be good with your han...uh...never mind"

"I-I'm a pretty good cook too, y'know!" Chie shot, before rubbing her head "Probably...if you'd asked, I would've whipped up some boxed lunches as easy as pie! Yep..."

"Yeah, lemme think about th-no!" Yosuke spat

"What makes you think I can't cook?" Chie snapped "Let's have a cook-off and see for ourselves!"

"My, my, doth the lady protest too much?" Yosuke scoffed "And hey, I never said I cooked! But I have this weird feeeling I'd win anyway..."

"I can understand that" Yukiko laughed

"What the-Yukiko?!" Chie stared agape at her friend

"Here, Nanako-chan can be our judge!" Yosuke said "I bet we'll make something up to par with your moms cooking Nanako-chan!"

The instantly tense look on Yu's face instantly told him that he had done something wrong

"I don't have a mom, she died in an accident" She stated flatly, stunning the occupants of the table

"H-Hey, Yosuke..." Chie said to him in a small voice

"I'm sorry...I didn't know" Yosuke apologized, greatly ashamed of what he said

"It's okay!" She smiled "Even if mom's gone, I still have a dad...and now I have a brother too!"

Yu's face instantly dropped it's regular stoicness for a look of astonishment

"And I'm having fun, I love Junes!" She piped happily

"Y-Yeah? That's good" Yosuke smiled, a sense of relief overcoming him

"We'll play with you anytime you want Nanako-chan!" Chie beamed

"Yeah, we should hand out more often" Yukiko nodded

"C'mon Nanako-chan, let's get a soda" Yosuke offered

"Okay!" Nanako smiled as she hopped off her chair

"She's a strong girl" Yukiko admired as the young girl walked away with Yosuke

"Yeah, she makes me feel like I'm the little kid here..." Chie noted before she stood up out of her chair "That's it, I'm going to get something for Nanako-chan too!"

Chie and Yukiko proceeded to stand up and leave the table, leaving Yu alone, but not for long as his young cousin came skampering back

"Do you want something too?" She asked with a big grin on her face

"Sure" He smiled, feeling the beginning of a bond forming with Nanako

"Wanna share some takoyaki?" She asked as Yu began to walk alongside her, smiling as they went to rejoin his friends

"Big bro..." he softly mumbled to himself

"Hmm?" Nanako asked "Did you say something?"

"No...it's nothing" He said with a shake of his head

* * *

**THURSDAY/ MAY 4/ MIDNIGHT PITCH, FLOOR 9**

"Four floors" Yosuke sighed in exhaustion before collapsing to the floor "Can't...too beat"

"I can barely stand" Chie panted as she wiped away the sweat pouring down her forehead

"We're so close..." Yu groaned as he held himself against the wall

"Sensei, all of you are exhausted!" Teddie pointed out "You'll have absolutely no chance of saving your friend if you go in now!"

"He's right partner" Yosuke said in between breaths "I know it's fustrating when we're so close but...we can't do anything the way we are now"

"Yosuke's right..." Chie nodded "There's a sentence I'd never thought I'd say"

"I understand" Yu nodded sadly "Teddie, use the Goho-M"

The bear merely nodded and did as it was instructed

A few more days passed for the group to regain their strength and heal their nagging injuries. Stacked with new weapons and new armor as well as an assortment of healing items, they finally resolved themselves to saving their friend

**SUNDAY/ MAY 8**

"This time, we go all out" Yu instructed

"Understood" Yosuke nodded, spinning his Naito

"We still don't have Yukiko with us so try to avoid any hazardous injuries" Chie instructed

"It's now or never, Sensei!" Teddie yelped

The four nodded and proceeded to knock open the door, a large full scale soccer pitch, complete with bleachers, corner flags and goals. Peering out into the distance, they spotted two figures ahead in the distance. One was the farmiliar shadow they had encountered a few days earlier and standing before him was-

"Daisuke!" The group yelled in unison as they rushed forward

"Huh?" The boy questioned the voices before he turned around "N-Narukami, Satonaka, Hanamura...what're you all-"

"**Oh look, it's one of them**" The shadow spat, now sprouting the typical yellow eyes and deep voice "**A girl is the last thing we need right now**"

"H-Hey!" Chie snapped

"Chie..." Yosuke groaned

"**Man, girls suck!**" The Shadow spat"**Why are they so goddamn needy?**"

"The hell are you talking about?" Daisuke spat

"**What gives them the right to judge me? Especially **_**that**_** bitch! You know the one I'm talking about. The so-called **_**girlfriend**_**. Holding hands, being all lovey dovey, that shit ain't me! I ain't gonna bend to your will! Why the hell should I change for your satisfaction?!**"

"That...that isn't-" Daisuke began

"**Guys...guys are different, they take you for who you are. So what if I'm stoic, so what if I'm not the smartest guy out there or the most romantic? They don't give a shit! Every damn girl on the planet is the same!**"

"What are you getting at?" Daisuke growled once again

"**I'm saying that girls suck! That everytime you see one, your skins starts to crawl...because you're scared**"

"W-Wha-"

"**You're terrified of them...it's pathetic, you hang around with Kou because you know it's just gonna be the two of you but that doesn't cut it. They always ask you out and you always shoot them down...You run away to the soccer pitch to escape all that, you'll do it just leave you alone! "**

"I...I'm not scared!" Daisuke snapped

"Daisuke!" Yu shouted "You have to listen what it has to say and accept it!"

"**Maybe...maybe girls just aren't our type**"

"What the hell are you saying?" Daisuke glared

"**Don't lie, you've thought about it**" The Shadow laughed "**But you've also thought it was a pathetic excuse to hide from your fear. You're scared of being rejected, you're scared to like another girl, you're terrified! It's pathetic!**"

"That's bullshit!" Daisuke roared

"**Is it? Remember when you snapped at the Amagi girl simply for asking you a question and she put her hand on your shoulder, remember how many girl you flat out rejeckted without giving them a chance? They make your skin crawl, their very existance repulses you. Look me in the eye and tell me otherwise!**"

"Y...you..." Daisuke growled as he glared at the shadow, unable to make a statement

"**And you wanna know how I know all this?**" The shadow chuckled "**Because I'm you**"

"Like hell!" Daisuke roared "What makes you think you get away with saying all this with my face?! I don't know who you are but one thing's for sure-"

"Daisuke, No!" Yu yelled, but it came too late

"THERE'S NO WAY IN HELL YOU'RE ME!"

...

"**Ha...haha...Haha! HAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**"

The shadow laughed triumphantly as it began to expand into an inhuman shape, while the real Daisuke simultaniously crumpled over

"Damn it" Yosuke grumbled

"It's no use complaining" Yu noted as he drew his blade

When the shadow finished transforming, it had taken the form of a blue ogre-like being, curled up in a ball with a chain wrapped around its waist, its small wings lifting him off the ground. His face resembled a demonic version of Daisuke's, complete with a tuft of brown hair

"**I am a shadow, the true self**" it declared "**I'm finally getting rid it all, the fear of being rejected! I'll make it so there's **_**no one left to reject me**_**!**"

With that, the shadow fired a massive gust of his wind, sending the group flying back

"Careful Sensei, his persona is wind baaaaassssssseeeeeee-wooooooooah!" Teddie cried as he was blown away

"We realized!" Yosuke snapped as he summoned a blast of Garu which didn't even faze the shadow. Yu followed by having Izanagi slash at the shadow, only to have it blocked

"Damn...it!" Chie growled as was continually blown back, sending her back first into a goal post

"Chie!" Yu yelped

"**That's right, you deserved that you damn she-devil!**" Shadow Daisuke roared

_"Hey there, I'm Daisuke Nagase"_

_"Huh, then is the soccer club?"_

_"Haha, nope. I'm just helping out because they're short on players. You're the transfer student, Yu Narukami right?"_

"Daisuke..." Yu muttered to himself "Pyro-Jack!"

Yu's newest Persona proceeded to summon his newest persona, aiming a gust of fire towards Daisuke who just swept it away

"Daisuke...even if you can't stand women, I'm still going to bring you back!" Yu loudly declared

"Partner?" Yosuke questioned

"I can't blame you for having a fear, but I know one thing" Yu stated as he began to run forward "And it's that fear can be overcome!"

"**Shut the hell up!**" The shadow roared as it fired another gust of wind "**What the hell do you know?! The women love you! I hear them gossiping about you all the time! And just like me, you brush them off!**"

Using her Persona to hold his ground, Yu sternly stood in front of the shadow

"I know, I know that, I'm not really the romantic type. But even if I was, I wouldn't hide away in fear after one bad break up, I'd get up and start over!" Yu yelled "And I know you can too!

Truth is, Daisuke. I was afraid too, of even making friends"

"Narukami?" Yosuke questioned

"I didn't have anyone before I came to Inaba" Yu declared "And I was scared that I never would. And now look, Chie Satonaka, a _girl_, became my first friend!"

"Yu-kun" Chie softly muttered

"And Yosuke...and Yukiko! They became my friends! They helped me overcome it!" Yu yelled as the Shadow continued to try and push him away "And I know, if you let us help and you just try...you can overcome it!"

"**Shut up! Didn't you hear? I'm terrified!**"

"So what?!" Yu screamed "I just told you that I was too! But that doesn't matter! I can help you! _We _can!"

"You're goddamn right!" Yosuke yelled

"Yeah!" Chie piped

"**SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!**" It said as it attempted to summon another gust, only to have to defend from an attack from Jiraiya and Tomoe "**YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND ANYTHING! I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO NOT BE AFRAID! A GIRL WILL NEVER BE THERE FOR ME!**"

"But Kou will be there for you" Yu said softly "He trusted me with your problems, just like you trusted me with his...and we can help. I never had friends growing up, and now that I have, I will do _anything_ to help them! That includes you, Daisuke!"

"**STOP IT!**" The shadow screamed as it threw off Yosuke and Chie's persona and fired a razor wind that slashed Yu cleanly across the chest, causing blood to run down his chest

"Narukami!" Yosuke yelled

"Yu-kun!" Chie shouted

"**NOW DO YOU SEE IT?!**" Shadow Daisuke roared

"T-That...won't stop me" Yu panted as he held his bleeding chest "You're my friend...I _am _going to help you, whether you like it or not"

A moment of silence followed, when suddenly the shadow started to twitch

"**Impossible...d-don't tell me I'm actually believing this crap!**" The shadow spat "**There's no w-**"

"Sensei's words got through!" Teddie loudly declared "The shadow is weak!"

Jiraiya immedinalty slashed away at the shadow's right arm and Tomoe proceeded to smash it's blade into its other arm

"Go!" Yosuke yelled

"Finish it off!" Chie added

"I'll save you Daisuke" Yu loudly declared "We all will!"

"IZANAGI!"

The Persona thrust its large blade forward, sending it straight through the shadows head

"**NO! NONONO! IMPOSSIBLE! I...I...AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!**"

The shadow screamed as it exploded in a mass of dark energy, leaving behind the Shadow's original form which fell down to the ground. Yu simultaniously falling with him

"Narukami!" Yosuke yelped as he immedinatly began to heal Yu "Easy bro, just take it easy, that's a pretty nasty cut"

"Yu..." He quietly stated, causing Yosuke to raise an eyebrow "Call me...Yu"

"Not really the priority here" Yosuke chuckled

Teddie and Chie observed the two, before hearing the quiet rumbling of Daisuke stumbling on the ground

"W-What happened?" Daisuke asked as he clutched his head and observed his surroundings "Where am I?"

He proceed to spin around, taking it all into his vision, including the bleeding Yu

"H-Hey! Narukami, what happened?!"

"Excuse me" Came the voice of Teddie as it approached the confused Teddie

"'The hell are you?!" Daisuke yelped

"I'm Teddie!" The bear beamed "But that's not the point! You're here because someone threw you into a TV"

"I what?" Daisuke asked

"It's true" Chie nodded "And we all came in here to get you"

"You went that far...for me?" Daisuke questioned as it came back to him "That...other me"

Daisuke rotated his head, gazing at his doppelganger who was facing him with a blank expression

"Daisuke...you have to accept it" Yu informed him as he was still being healed

"Yeah...I know" Daisuke confirmed as he began to walk towards the shadow "I know what you were saying, and I know most of it is true...but you were wrong about one thing...I don't hate girls. But yeah, you're right that I'm scared shitless of being rejected again"

Daisuke continued to slowly approach his shadow, staring it dead in the eye

"I...I'm scared of it happening all over again...but like they said, one day I don't have to be scared anymore, and if they...and Kou can help me through it...then I know one day. This fear I have...will be gone. You're right..you we right about everything" He said as he stopped infront of the shadow "And you know all this because...you're me...and I'm you"

The shadow stared blankly at him before giving him a small nod and begin to fade into a bright blue light. Above appeared a small blue dragon like creature, chains attached its feet and with a long mane of orange hair. The other immediantly understood what this meant. Daisuke's Persona had awoken.

The group stared at the creature before it too faded and in it's place was a tarot card marked with the Strength arcana which gently floated down into Daisuke's hand

_The strength to face one's true self has been made manifest_

_Daisuke Nagase has faced his true self and has gained the power of blowing away all of lifes obstactles in his path_, _the Persona; "Fujin"_

"I get it now..." Daisuke said softly before he fell to his knees

And when he awoke, he was in the middle of the electronic's section in Junes

"W-What?" He questioned

"Welcome back" Yosuke nodded

"You guys...then...that wasn't a dream?" Daisuke asked "You guys really went all out for me?"

"Of course!" Yosuke laughed "You're Yu's buddy! Which makes you our buddy!"

"Plus, we couldn't just leave you in there!" Chie noted too before Daisuke's eyes turned to Yu, his jacket closed to cover his torn shirt

"Hey...thanks" Daisuke smiled, Yu responded with a small nod but then shifted to a look of concern as Daisuke began to droop down

"We need to get this guy home" Yosuke said as he slung Daisuke's arm over his shoulder "I'll get him home"

"Hey...Narukami" Daisuke said "I heard that other me say something about Kou...he's in there too, isn't he?"

...

"Yeah" Yu said with a sigh

"Save my buddy...will you?" Daisuke said with a small plead before Yosuke began to pull him away

"Don't worry" he nodded "I will"

* * *

YIKES, this chapter took a whole two months?

There are two reasons why: lazyness &amp; research. Research on what? You'll find out

Already I've made a pretty big change to story by offing Namatame as well as drop some subtle and _unsubtle_ hints of what's different with his character...

Also, I don't plan to make this a long fic, twenty chapters, tops


	3. Raijin

**Raijin**

**MAY 8/ EVENING**

_"I took him home, well I took him around the block and then...he told me he wanted to walk the rest of the way by himself"_

"He probably wanted to be alone when he showed up, he _has _been missing for a few weeks" Yu theorized

_"Yeah" Yosuke agreed, his voice ringing through the other end of the cell phone "Probably wanted to explain to his folks where he'd been, he wanted me out of the way for that"_

"You don't think he's actually going to tell his parents what actually happened, do you?" Yu questioned

_"I really doubt it, plus I kinda told him not too" Yosuke explained_

"Okay, all that's left is Kou" Yu sighed "But even then, we're all exhausted, we're pushing ourselves too far. Let's wait a few days, I don't want our bodies shutting down on us"

_"Yeah, plus exams start tomorrow, I've barely studied" Yosuke groaned "We all need our rest"_

"I get you, 'night" Yu agreed as he hung up the phone

**MAY 9/ MORNING**

"Morning..." Chie yawned as she appeared beside Yu on the walk to School "Exams start today, huh? Real life's hard..."

"Did you study for them?" Yu asked

"Can't you tell?" Chie sobbed "Do I look like I'm ready?...But even after the exams, we've still got the case...more depressing stuff's gonna happen, one after the other

"It can't be helped" Yu sighed "Not until we solved the case..."

"Yeah" Chie sighed with a nod "I only hope we go in and get Ichijou-san before it's too late"

**MAY 12/ AFTER SCHOOL**

"It's over...it's finally over" Yosuke quietly sobbed

"I think you may be overreacting" Yu noted

"Hey Yu-kun, what did you put for the tallest mountain in the solar system?" Chie asked

"Olympus Mons" He told her

"That's what I put too" Yukiko nodded

"Aw man, I picked the wrong one" Chie sighed as she placed her head on her desk

"If Yukiko and Yu both got it then it's probably right" Yosuke groaned "Can't wait until our grades are posted out in the hall and I'm humiliated in front of everything

_"Hey, you hear that news crew that's been hanging around here is gonna cover those biker gangs"_

_"Seriously?"_

_"Yeah I heard it from a buddy of mine who goes to those biker meetings"_

_"Dude, 'the hell are you doing hanging out with someone in a biker gang?"_

"Biker gang?" Yukiko questioned

"Yeah, they raise a ruckus from time to time, I guess your place is too far away to hear it, eh?" Chie noted

"I live right by the road, the noise can drive you insane" Yosuke added

"I hear some guys at the school are part of it too" Chie said

"Yeah, I hear there's a first year student here who a total hellraiser" Yosuke nodded "One of the guys working at Junes knew him, apparently the guys been a total legend since middle school...though come to think of it, I don't think they actually said he was in a biker gang..."

"D-Did you say he was a legend?" Yukiko piped in excitement

"Not that kind of legend" Chie groaned

"Oh..." Yukiko said sadly

**DRAMA CLUB**

"So I have the lead role this year" Yumi smiled "Could you help me with my part, Narukami-kun?"

"Yeah, I'd be ha-"

"Yumi-san, your mother collapsed!" Came the cry of a young student as she rushed into the room "There was a call from the hospital!"

"Huh?!" She shrieked "But...wha...we're still in the...the mid-"

"Go and see her" Yu urged

"R-Right!" She nodded before she dashed out the room

_"I wonder what happened..."_

_"There's no point in continuing today, we're all too worried..."_

Yu stared at the group before he decided to leave the room

**MUSIC ROOM**

"Cut, cut, cut!" The band captain shouted "The trombone is flat. Is that you again, Ayane?"

"I-I'm sorry!" The small girl apologized

"Alright. Let's see what we can do about the tempo in the second movement..." The band captain sighed once again, Yosuke merely observed the two, while holding a horribly out of tune guitar...

* * *

"You must be tired, Senpai." Ayane noted "You have such great tone! I guess you weren't kidding when you said you'd played before"

_"You kidding me? This guitar sounds terrible..."_

"Oh, sorry, I know that doesn't mean much coming from someone like me." Ayane apologized "I was sticking out again today...I wish I had as much talent as you"

"Hey, come on, I know you have talent" Yosuke smiled

"Huh? Y-You really think so? I guess I'll just have to keep at it then..." Ayane yelped in surprise which devolved into a happy smile "We already have another trombone player; Takeru-senpai. He's really good, so he always gets picked for the 's why I've never gone to one. But it doesn't matter... I can't play in front of an audience anyway...I'm sorry... I shouldn't bother you with all this. I better get this place picked up so I can go home"

"I'll help" Yosuke nodded

"A-Ah, Senpai, you don't have to-" Ayane began but Yosuke had already begun to help "T-Thank you..."

"No pr-" He began but then noticed a blur of silver hair speed past the window "Yu?"

"Wasn't that the transfer student?" Ayane noted before she noticed the concerned look on Yu's face "Are you okay Yosuke-senpai?"

"Y-Yeah" He nodded, despite the fact the was clearly not

"You can go look for him" Ayane piped in

"N-No, I have to help out here" Yosuke informed her

"It's fine" Ayane smiled "I've cleaned up more by myself?"

"You sure?" He asked

"Of course" She smiled

"Thanks, I owe you one!" Yosuke beamed before he took off down the hall, catching up with Yu just as he reached the school gates "Woah partner, what's the rush?"

"I need to go to hospital" Yu informed him with stopping

"W-What's wrong?! Is Nanako-chan sick?! Did Dojima-san get shot on the job?!" Yosuke panicked

"It's one of my classmates, her mother's in hospital" Yu explained

"O-Oh" Yosuke sounded, wondering why Yu would even bother with this

"Do you have money for the bus?" Yu asked

"Ah...yeah sure..." Yosuke nodded

**INABA MUNICPLE HOSPITAL**

The two walked down the hallway, searching for the girl when they eventually spotted her outside a hospital room, angrily trading words with a woman on a bench

"What is going on?!" Yumi snapped "Why is _he _here?! What are you doing here with him?! You didn't collapse, why did you lie to me?! I can't believe this? Why did you..."

"Yumi..." The woman the pair assumed to be her mother spoke "He's the one who collapsed...not me...but you wouldn't have come if I told you that. So yes, I lied...I wanted you to see him"

"Mom...what the hell...why would I want anything to do with that man?" She said quietly

"I know you don't...but this was his last request" Yumi's mother said quietly "You've suffered a lot, I feel responsible...but he doesn't have long left...that's why he wanted to see you"

"S-So what!?" Yumi snapped "I couldn't care less if he lives or dies! He's nothing to me, he's _not _my father! He abandoned us both! And now he's expecting forgiveness just because he's dying?! Don't give me that crap!"

"I've made up my mind, I'm going to be with him until he passes" Her mother said sternly "Letting him die alone would be too cruel"

"Are you stupid?! N-No, I won't allow this!" Yumi spat with a shake of her head

"Yumi...I'm sorry, but it's what I want to do" Her mother informed

"T-Then go ahead, It's not my problem" Yumi growled as she turned around "How could you...after he abandoned us?"

As she heard the sullen footsteps of her mother leave, she tilted her head to the left, Yu and Yosuke popping into her view

"W-What are you doing here?!" She snapped angrily, causing the two to flinch as she approached "How long were you listening?!"

"I heard...pretty much everything" Yu sighed solemnly

"You...eavesdropping on other peoples conversations...you sicko!" She spat before she noticed Yosuke "And who's this?!"

"I just paid for the ride" Yosuke gulped as he began to back away "Don't mind me, I'll just be going, Yosuke Hanamura, withdrawing coolly"

As Yosuke fled the scene, Yumi quietly stared at Yu before dipping her head

"Mom didn't collapse" She sighed "When I got to the hospital, it turned out the one in the bed is that man who _used _to be my father...He abandoned me and my mom ten years ago...he found another woman...he's a dirty scumbag. And now he's come crawling back because he's dying? Yeah, after getting dumped by his slut..."

Yu merely furrowed his eyebrows and averted his eyes as she turned around

"This sucks...I'd all but erased him from my life" Yumi groaned "His name, his face...everything about him...and now mom goes crawling back to him just he's dying? She's being stupid"

"Would you rather she left him to die alone?" Yu asked

"Of course!" She snapped as she turned to him, but her rage was temperately subsided as she looked at Yu

And noted the incredibly pained look on the boys face

...

"Don't pity me" She spat

"I'm not" He said with a shake of his head

"_He _left _her_, don't you understand?! Now he's a hand-me-down from some other woman who dumped him because he got sick. They're both pathetic!"

"You're right"

"W-Wha?" She questioned

"I think you're right, your mother shouldn't want anything to with this guy" Yu agreed "But if it's her choice then-"

"Shut up! What the hell do you know?!" She spat

"A lot..." Yu said sternly with an uncharacteristic glare that actually stunned her a little

"I'm sorry" She apologized "What...what were you even doing here?"

"I came here after you...and the other guy was my friend Yosuke" Yu explained "He tagged along when he saw I was in a rush"

"I see...I'm sorry for scaring him off" Yumi apologized again

"It's okay...I'll leave you alone for now" Yu stated as he began to leave "You know...we're more alike than you think"

"Huh?"

"Nothing...it's nothing" Yu sighed as he departed

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"Welcome home Big Bro!" Nanako smiled

"Hey" Yu smiled back

"I went shopping today, so the fridge is full" Nanako noted before turning back to the TV

"Great, I'm starving" Yu sighed as he opened the fridge and began to dig around

"Hey...Yu" Dojima said with a sigh, attracting the attention of his Nephew

"Uncle?"

"Listen...I'm sorry about yesterday" He apologized, raising an eyebrow from Yu "About...mentioning your dad on the phone, I-"

"It's fine" Yu said as he sat down, but in a tone of voice that made it clear to Dojima that he didn't want to talk about it

"I never really know what to say to teenagers..." Dojima sighed "But hey, I'm not an old man yet!"

"I know Uncle" Yu laughed

"By the way, what have you been doing after school?" Dojima questioned

"Juggling between clubs and working" Yu informed him

"Really? You're responsible for your age" Dojima laughed as he took a seat at the table "You're my sisters kid alright...but it's not like we have much in common, apart from the murders..."

"You still suspect me, don't you?" Yu asked quietly as he also sat down

"N-No, that's not it" Dojima sighed

"Then how about we talk about you instead?" Yu smiled

"About me?...You're interested in the strangest things" Dojima said with a shrug "I'm exactly what I look like, just a detective in a small rural town who lives with his daughter, not really the most interesting thing in the world, it'd hardly interest a high school kid...but y'know...it's good to have you around the house...Nanako really seems to like having you around, she's even started calling you Big Bro!"

A short laugh came from Dojima before he shot Yu a somewhat melancholy look

"Are you okay with her calling you that? I can tell her to stop if-"

"No...it's okay" Yu said with a nod

"Truth is...I'm seeing you more like a younger brother than a son" Dojima informed him

"Ah, should I start calling _you _Big Bro?" Yu chuckled

"Stop that, you're sending chills down my spine" Dojima laughed cheerfully "...I haven't laughed like that in a long time"

Yu smiled at his uncle, feeling the start of a true bond with him

**MAY 13/ TV WORLD**

"Here we are Sensei!" Teddie smiled

"W-Woah" Yosuke gulped

"Another stadium?!" Chie spat "Oh come on..."

"It's no use complaining...if Kou's in there then-"

"H-Huh?!"

"What's wrong Ted?" Yosuke asked

"Sensei, the shadows!" Teddie cried

"What, are there a lot of them?" Yu questioned

"No?" Teddie said with a shake "They're all gone!"

"What?" Chie questioned "What'd ya mean they're all gone?"

"I can't sense any shadows in there" Teddie explained "I can feel that guy you're talking about, as well as his other self, but apart from that, it's completely empty!"

"H-How the hell?" Yosuke questioned as he walked forward into the entrance way of the stadium. It interior was almost identical to that of Daisuke's arena save for once difference "Dude, Teddie's right, it's completely empty!"

"W-What?" Yu questioned as he stepped in and saw it for himself "But how?"

"S-Sensei, do you think it's because you're back already?" Teddie questioned "The shadows typically gather in one place, but since there were two places that spawned when those two were thrown in-"

"They all went to the one place when we showed up" Yosuke continued

"And they haven't had time to regroup yet" Yu finished

"So you mean we already took care of all the shadows in this area?!" Chie shouted "Alright!"

"At last, a break..." Yosuke sighed "Come on guys, this should be smooth sailing!"

True enough, they traversed through all floors of the building with absolutely zero encounters with Shadows. The most difficult thing being climbing the steps. But eventually the trio along with Teddie arrived at the top floor, kicked the door down and stormed onto the basketball court, right before Kou and his shadow

"Kou!" Yu shouted, gaining his friends attention

"Narukami?" He questioned "What are-"

"**Hey, loner, I'm talking here**" The Shadow spat "**Didn't you hear a word I said, you have **_**no one**_**. You really think they're here solely to save you?**"

"That's right!" Yosuke snapped

"**Then why'd you go after Daisuke first?**" The shadow chuckled

"'The hell does that have to do with anything?" Chie spat

"**They came for Daisuke first...and they figured they'd save you too since Daisuke asked them too**" Shadow Kou laughed once again

"That's not true!" Yu yelled "We were always coming back for you!"

"Yeah...They-" Kou began but then clutched his head in frustration "Argh! What the hell is even going on?!"

"Ichijo, listen to me" Chie began as she stood beside the boy, causing a slight blush to appear on his cheeks "That right there is another you, you have to-"

"**I wonder, should I tell everyone how you feel?**" The shadow laughed, angering Kou

"You shut up! Don't you dare!" Kou roared

"Ichijo?" Chie questioned

"**Look at yourself...do you think there's even the slightest chance it will ever happen?**" The shadow spat "**There's no way in hell anyone would want anything to do with you...especially our so-called family...they have her now**"

"Shut up!" Kou yelled again

"**Why do they need us when they have a real kid now? I'm just some grubby orphan they picked up one day because they thought they couldn't have kids...**" Shadow Kou groaned "**Now that they have Sachiko, why am I still here? Why don't they just kick me to the curb just like the pathetic little orphan I am?!**"

"That's not true!" Kou shouted in a tone that sounded like he was trying to convince himself

"Orphan?" Yosuke repeated

"I didn't know that..." Yu muttered

"**Oh, but it is true**" The shadow grinned "**And let's be honest with ourselves, they disapprove of everything we do that being let go will probably be a relief**"

"That's a load of crap!" Kou roared "What the hell are you? Why are you saying these things? Why the hell do you look like me!?"

"**Because **_**I am **_**you**"

"Like hell!" Kou snapped

"Kou, calm down!" Yu urged

"Stop, before you go any further!" Yosuke added

"Ichijo, you have to stop!" Chie pleaded

"I don't think of any of that stuff! There's no way in hell you're me! I would never say that!" Kou yelled, much to the delight of the shadow

"**At last**" Shadow Kou smiled as dark energy began to flood off him "**Now it begins!**"

"Damn it!" Yosuke snapped as he summoned Jiraiya

"It's no use complaining" Yu said sternly as Izanagi appeared behind him

"Ichijo!" Chie cried out as she caught the collapsing boy before gently laying him down and staring up at the shadow with a stern glare "Tomoe..."

The Shadow's smile retained until it transformed into an inhuman shape. Becoming a large floating blue orge-like creature with long blue hair and a long black cloth wrapped around its neck. Four tomoe drums attached to a large ring floated behind him.

"**I am a Shadow, the true self**" it boomed "**It's no use living this lie anymore, all I deserve is loneliness**"

"Kou...I didn't know you were struggling with that kind of stuff" Yu declared "But we'll save you...and we'll help you"

"**Ha!**" The shadow spat as it began to charge "**After this, they'll be nothing left **_**to **_**save!**"

Yu continued onwards, summoning Izanagi which was effortlessly swiped away by Kou. Yosuke's Jiraiya was next, charging forth and narrowly avoiding a strike from Kou, the distraction allowing Tomoe to land a strike

"**Lucky shot**" The shadow scoffed "**But it makes no difference, no matter the outcome of this fight, I'll be alone by the end**"

"Don't even start to think that" Yu said sternly as Izanagi dodged various lightning bolts from the shadow "Kou isn't alone, even if his family isn't related by blood, even if they do have a blood related child, if he's still around, then that means they still think of him as a son!"

...

"T-They..." A barely conscious Kou mumbed

"**What?!**" The shadow cried out as it began to flicker "**What crap is this?!**"

"And Daisuke! He asked us to save Kou!" Yosuke roared

"So we're not leaving without him!" Chie added

"**Shut the hell up!**" Shadow Kou screamed "**Don't you understand?! I'm-**"

"Not alone" Yu interrupted "We're Kou's friends...and we're not stopping until we prove to both him and you that with us, you're not as alone as you think"

"**You shut up!**" Shadow Kou roared as it fired a mass of lightning, which was blocked by Izanagi "**W-Why?! Why isn't it working?!**"

"Because you've started to realize" Yu muttered "The same thing happened with Daisuke"

"We're finally getting through" Yosuke noted

"**SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!**" The Shadow roared as it attempted to throw another bolt only to have its arm slashed by Tomoe

"Jiraiya!" Yosuke yelled as his Persona blew back the Shadow "Go. partner!

"Now, Izanagi!" Yu yelled as the Persona thrusted its large blade into the shadows forehead

"**AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHRRRRGHHHHHHHHH!**" The shadow roared as its monstrous form disintegrated back into its human shape

"Finally" Yosuke sighed as he noticed Kou was starting to awaken

"Narukami..." He groaned "What...the hell is going on?"

"Excuse me" Teddie piped as he appeared alongside Kou

"What the-?!" He yelped

"Mr. Ichijou, that there is another you" Teddie stated, pointing out Kou's shadow self "The only way it won't come back and attack us again is if you accept it"

"Narukami?" Kou questioned, only earning a nod from the silver haired boy

"We'll explain everything later..." Yosuke noted "But just like Teddie said, right now, you gotta accept your other self"

...

"Alright...I get it" Kou noted as he stood up and walked towards his shadow "I was scared...sacred that they didn't want me now that they had an actual kid and they disapproved of everything I did..."

The trio watched as Kou stood infront of the Shadow, the two Kou's making direct eye contact

"But...that doesn't mean they don't care about me...it doesn't mean I'm alone, I have friends..." Kou noted "Narukami, Daisuke...and their friends too, I'm not alone, I get it now..." Kou smiled as he turned back to Narukami "I'm not alone"

The boy merely smiled in return

"And neither are you" Kou noted to his Shadow "I have people...we both do...because you're me"

The shadow smiled briefly before turning into a bright light and scattering away, above where it once stood was a large blue human-like being with blue skin, a loincloth covering the crotch area with a black scarf around its neck and draping behind it. Its face blank save for bright yellow eyes. A long mane of blue hair, a shade darker from its skin sat upon its head. Seven tomoe drums attached to a large ring floated behind him

Kou and the group continued to stare at the being until it flickered out of existence, in its place was a tarot card marked with the Strength arcana which gently floated down into Kou's hands

_Kou Ichijo has faced his true self and has gained the power to stand strong, to stand as the lightning in the rain, the Persona; "Raijin"_

"So this is...my power" Kou said weakly as he began to feel feint

"Oi!" Yosuke yelped as he caught him

"He's exhausted" Chie noted "Can't really blame him, come on, let's get him outta here"

**JUNES**

"Ugh...my head" Kou weakly groaned as he sat on the floor

"Welcome back to the real world" Yu smiled as he helped him up

"You guys...really came to save me?" Kou asked

"Of course!" Chie said right to his face, turning his cheeks slightly red

"I...I don't know what to say..." Kou muttered before he began to clutch his head

"I'll take him home" Yu offered as he helped Kou to his feet

"Yeah" Yosuke smiled "Another successful rescue!"

"Keep it down will ya" Chie grumbled

"Hey...Narukami" Kou began as Yu started to escort him our of the building "That...that other me..."

"It was a Shadow" Yu began to explain as the two entered the elevator "I'd tell you more but I think we should wait until you rest up"

"Yeah...I feel so feint I might just collapse right here" Kou grumbled as the two reached the bottom floor

"You can't tell your family what happened" Yu warned as the two began to exit the building "You'll have to think of a cover story..."

"Got it" Kou nodded as he and Yu stepped outside "Daisuke is..."

"We saved him" Yu confirmed before looking out over the street "What the..."

"Narukami?" Kou questioned

"Fog..." Yu softly murmered as he looked over the blurred landscape

"Huh?" Kou piqued

"No...it's nothing..." Yu said quietly

**EVENING/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

_"Specialists are still baffled at the sudden appearance of the fog today in Inaba as there were no signs of it approaching, seeing as rain has not been seen in the area for quite some time_

_Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming"_

"The fog" Dojima muttered "I don't get how it just appeared without them realizing, sure as hell made it difficult to see where I was going"

"It's...confusing" Yu agreed

_"Young men, recklessly riding their motorcycles, disturbing the peace of a quiet rural town...our special report took a turn for the violent when one of the apparent leaders attacked the camera crew!"_

"These guys are pretty bad at blurring" Yu muttered

_"The hell are you punks doing here?!"_

"That voice" Dojima muttered as he put his paper down

_"This ain't a show! Get bent!"_

"Still up to the same old tricks…?" Dojima sighed, earning the attention of Yu and Nanako

"Do you know him, Dad?" Nanako asked

"Mmm, well, I know him through work." Dojima explained "His name's Kanji Tatsumi…he's quite a handful. He's been crushing biker gangs in the area since middle school...But I thought he got into a high school and started attending class…Huh. Man, that blur sure is pointless. It's completely obvious who it is. The guy's family runs a historic textile shop. I think what happened was, he crushed the local bikers all by himself because the noise kept his mother up at night. It's a nice gesture, but he's way too violent… At this rate, his mother'll have to apologize again."

"Oh, the weather report's showing on the bottom." Nanako noted "It's going to rain tomorrow. I'll make sure to hang the laundry inside the house."

_Beep Beep Beep_

"Who's calling at this hour?" Dojima grumbled as he picked up the phone "Detective Dojima speaking...what?! I'll be right there!"

"Daddy?" Nanako questioned as he father ran over to put on his shows

"Yu, lock up tonight, okay?" Dojima demanded "I won't be back 'till late, if I make it back tonight..."

"U-Uncle?" Yu questioned

"Just do this, okay?" Dojima asked

"Y-Yeah" Yu nodded before Dojima sped out the door

"Daddy?" Nanako muttered

"Some probably came up at the station" Yu comforted her "I'm sure it's fine...hey, it's getting pretty late, you should probably go to bed"

"Alright" Nanako sighed as she left the room

The instant she was out of view, Yu's phone began to ring, checking the caller I.D, he saw it was from Yukiko

"Yukiko?" Yu questioned, she had never called him before

"N-Narukami-kun" She stuttered as Yu answered the call, he could hear faint sirens in the background

"Yukiko, what's wrong?" He questioned her panicked tone

"It's..." Yukiko stuttered "D-Did you save Ichijo-kun and Nagase-kun?"

"Yeah we did, we saved Kou just this afternoon, why?"

"Narukami-kun...They found a body..."

...

"What?" Yu questioned with a gasp

"They found it hanging on a telephone pole just down the street, one of our chefs spotted her when he was taking out the garbage"

"I don't understand! We saved Kou and Daisuke!" Yu snapped

"Big Bro?" Nanako asked as she walked back into the room

"It wasn't either of them..." Yukiko muttered

"Yukiko...who...who is it?" Yu began to panic before Yukiko finally replied

"It's Ai Ebihara...she's dead..."

* * *

Much shorter chapter this time round, mostly because it was just tying up loose ends

So, our second big change, Ebi's gone the way of Namatame and she's out

If you think these are the biggest changes to the story, just you wait...

* * *

Some things to note here:

#1: Marie will not be in this story, I haven't played Golden, and from what I've seen of her, I'm pretty sure I already hate here...

#2: I'm not really good at fight scenes so I tend to not make them too long or too detailed

#3: I do plan on having a pairing in this fic at one point. I also intend to completely deconstruct a certain pairing and change the entire...well, _relationship _part of it, probably not everyone will be happy about it...


	4. You Can't Save Them All

**YOU CAN'T SAVE THEM ALL**

* * *

"B...But how?" Yu stuttered "How was she even in there?! We didn't see her on the midnight channel!"

_"Narukami-kun...it's possible that she was thrown in after Ichijo and Nagase-kun..." Yukiko sighed sadly_

"Damn...damn it" Yu growled as he bit his lip "How did we not know?!"

_"We didn't check the midnight channel..." Yukiko noted "We stopped watching it after we saw Nagase-kun and Ichijo-kun..."_

"This...doesn't make sense" Yu noted "Why...why was she...why did he target her?"

_"We don't know the killers selection process...we don't why he threw in someone else when there were already two people inside..."_

"I...I...why didn't Teddie sense anything?"

_"He didn't know she was in there...plus, with those two inside, he probably didn't sense her"_

"Damn it...damn it" Yu growled as he dropped his phone and slammed his fist into the couch "Damn it!"

_"Narukami-kun..." Yukiko said softly, sensing no reply from him, she hung up_

**MAY 14/ AFTER SCHOOL/ TV WORLD**

"I don't get it" Yosuke growled "How did you not know?!"

"I-I-I-I didn't sense her!" Teddie panicked "With those two in here, I couldn't sense when a new energy appeared!"

"How the hell could you not know?! The reason there were no shadows after Kou last time is because they were all after Ebihara weren't they?!" Yosuke roared "Not because of any regrouping crap!"

"Yosuke, that's enough" Chie said as she grabbed his shoulder

"Like hell! We could have saved her!" Yosuke snapped "Now another girl is dead, just like Mayumi Amano! just like Saki-Senpai!"

"Calm down" Yu urged "Yelling at Teddie will get us nowhere"

"You're just shifting the blame onto him!" Chie added

"How could he not sense her?!" Yosuke questioned "Because of his incompetence, a girl is-"

Yosuke's sentence was cut off as he was yanked back by his collar, his assailant twisted the boy around to face him

"P-Partner?" Yosuke stuttered as Yu started into his eyes

"Calm. down" Yu stated slowly before letting go of him "If anything, we're all to blame for not checking out the Midnight Channel"

"He's right, we need to check that every time it's raining" Chie agreed quietly "We slacked off..."

"We can't blame Teddie for not knowing when we didn't know ourselves" Yu informed him "The only person responsible for Ebi's death is the person who threw her in the TV"

...

"Damn..." Yosuke sighed before tilting his head towards the bear "I'm sorry Ted..."

"Come on, let's go..." Chie sighed sadly "Hey...it's raining tonight..."

"I know..." Yosuke sighed "I know..."

**POLICE STATION**

"'The hell's going on here?" Dojima questioned among the loud chatter, a majority of it sounding angry

"Oh, you don't know Dojima-san?" His young partner questioned"With the most recent murder, they're adding two detectives to the case"

"The hell?" He questioned

"Yeah, and here's the thing, one of them requested to be transferred here to deal with the case" Adachi informed him

"_One _of them?" Dojima questioned "They're not together?"

"Nope, the higher ups hired some..._Detective Prince _guy, least that's what they call him. Apparently he's originally from Inaba" Adachi read off a sheet"And the requested transfer came from...Sumaru City, wherever that is"

"And they hired both of them?" Dojima grumbled "Their names?"

"No clue" Adachi grumbled as his eyes scanned the sheet of paper "It's not written here"

"Great, so two strangers are coming here to hijack our case" Dojima grumbled before planting his head on his desk

_RING RING RIIIIIING_

_..._

_RING RING RIIIIIING_

"Uh...Dojima-san?" Adachi questioned

"You pick it up..." He grumbled

"Uh..." Adachi stalled before picking up the phone "Desk of Ryotaro Dojima, Tohru Adachi speaking, whom may I ask is calling?...O-Oh? Yes right away"

Dojima peaked his eye up as Adachi attempted to hand him the phone

"It's your sister, Dojima-san"

"What?" He questioned as he took the phone "Sis?"

_"Ryotaro, I'm glad I caught you, I tried your cell but I got nothing"_

"Damn, I must've left it at home" He grumbled "Motoko, how did you get this number?"

_"I called the front desk, and asked them to patch me through. All I had to do was tell them I was your sister"_

"Mo-"

_"How's Yu? Is he doing well at School? And little Nanako-chan, how's she?"_

"They're both fine, Motoko, it's not that I don't appreciate the call but what's this about?" Dojima questioned "What's so important that you had to call my work phone?"

...

_"I can't do it anymore Ryotaro"_

"What are you talking about?" Dojima questioned

_"I figured if we worked together we could just...forget it all, but..."_

Adachi merely stared at his stone faced partner, his expression slowly shifting

"Alright, I get it" He nodded "No, I don't blame you...it's alright"

_"And Yu...how will I tell him?"_

"I'll tell him" Dojima stated sternly

_..._

_"Thank you...I'm too much of a coward to do it myself..."_

"Yeah...yeah...I get it...it was nice talking you too Sis...Bye" Dojima sighed before he hung up his phone

"Dojima-san...?" Adachi questioned

"Find their names"

"Eh?"

"The names, of those two detectives. Find them for me" Dojima sighed

"R-Right..."

**CHINESE DINER AIYA**

"Mmm...the meat and rice just flow through my veins" Chie piped happily

"Wolfing it down, huh?" Yu laughed "You look so happy"

"The key to keeping up your energy is food, sleep, and activity!" Chie smiled "And on the happiness scale, it's up there with watching my favorite action movies..."

Yu merely smiled at the girl

"I need to work hard and pump myself up, or else I can't pull us out of a jam, right? Especially Yukiko... I need to be able to protect her..."

"I thought you said you wanted to be more thant just the girl who protects Yukiko" Yu reminded her, earning him a silent look from Chie "I'll look out for her too...and I'm Yosuke will as well"

"Thanks..." She smiled "That's why you're our leader"

Yu merely smiled back

"I'll make myself stronger! For Yukiko, too! So keep it up, Leader!" Chie smiled "I know me and Yosuke joke around with you a lot...But we're all counting on you...Heheh..."

...

"It's nice"

"Hmm?" Chie questioned

"When I'm hanging out with You and Yosuke, I can just...forget" Yu sighed with a smile "About everything bad going on..."

"Yu-kun?"

"Relax, I'm not gonna go off on a speech like last time" He affirmed her

"Ugh, Yu-Kun" Chie grumbled "You can just open up, no need to be so cryptic all the time"

...

"Ebi's death...and some other stuff..." Yu sighed as he rubbed his head "It's plagues us, and yet, we can still just kick back and hang around afterwards..."

"Now that you mention it, it does seem kinda weird we're just chowing down right after we failed to save someone" Chie groaned "Agh, Now I lost my appetite!"

"Sorry..." Yu apologized before he heard his phone ring, opening it up, he found a text from his Uncle

_"Yu, buddy, we need to talk"_

"Buddy?" He questioned

"Huh?" Chie asked

"It's a text from my Uncle" He said as he closed his phone, witnessing Chie chow down "I...thought you lost your appetite?"

"The silence when you were checking your phone made me hungry again" She shrugged "'Scuse me! Another Beef and Rice please! How about you, Yu-kun?"

"I'm good..." He said flatly

"There you are" Yosuke sighed as he entered the Diner

"Finally. You took your time" Chie grumbled

"I just regained the feeling back in my legs" He groaned "Your training regime is torture!"

"You don't hear Yu-kun complain" She glared

"I actually have to get going..." Yu noted "Something about that text is bugging me, I have to talk to Uncle"

"Oh...see ya" Yosuke bid farewell to him as he left

"Geez, what was that?" Chie questioned "Did I do something?"

"I doubt it" Yosuke noted as he occupied Yu's vacant seat "He seems to enjoy spending time with you"

"What'dya mean?" She asked with a mouthful of rice

"You too, getting all chummy when you're alone. Didn't you two have a date last week?" Yosuke chuckled

"It wasn't a date!" She snapped

"You took you to a restraunt and opened up to you didn't he?" Yosuke laughed

"He took me _here_! And all he told me was about how he didn't have any friends growing up!" Chie roared

"Wait, what?" Yosuke questioned

"Yeah, he told how us two and Yukiko were his first real friends" Chie informed him "He even cried a little bit!"

"He what?!" Yosuke spat "That jerk! He told me he had no interest in you and then he goes and lays a sob story on you?"

"Wait...Yu-kun said that he had no interest in me?" Chie questioned quietly

...

"W-W-Well I asked him whether or not he was interested in you or Yukiko, and-" Yosuke panicked

"He's interested in Yukiko?" She questioned again

"W-Well, actually. His answer was pretty much a...maybe...to both of you" Yosuke noted "He said he doesn't have feelings for you but he might fall for you or Yukiko at some point, please don't hurt me!"

...

"I'm not gonna hurt you, moron" Chie sighed "But you shouldn't interrogate Yu-kun over stuff like that"

"Huh? You're not mad?" Yosuke questioned before studying her face "Ah, I get it! You're not mad because you got the hots for Yu!"

"What?!"

_Now _she was mad. Even Yu could hear Yosuke's shriek of pain from all the way downtown, just before he stepped into the Dojima residence

"Nanako, go to your room for a bit..." Dojima's voice piped up as soon as the door opened "Me and Yu...your big bro and I need to be alone for a bit..."

"Alright..." She sighed as she departed

"Uncle?" Yu questioned before his Uncle popped into view

"Hey..." He greeted with a meloncholy look before taking a seat "Sit...sit with me okay?"

"O...kay?" Yu nodded as he sat at the table

"Your mom called me..." Dojima began

**EVENING/ POLICE STATION**

"Ah there you are" The chief smiled as the door opened

"Yes, I apologize for my lateness" The young man apologized

"It's quite alright" The chief nodded "Though I should note that you're not the first to arrive here"

"Ah yes" He noted the occupied seat infront of the Police Chiefs desks "You must be the detective that requested the transfer"

"Indeed I am" He smiled as he stood up. The young man observed him; mid thirties, brown hair, glasses, suit...

"It's a pleasure" The young man smiled back as he shook his hand

"I hear they call you the Detective Prince" He smiled, as he observed him, he dressed formally, plaid pants with a large blue coat, blue hat and blue hair, someone likes blue... "It's far better than my old nickname; Captain Sideburns..."

"Naoto Shirogane is my name" He noted "It's a pleasure, Mr..."

"Of course, how rude of me" He apologized "I'm Katsuya Suou, I'm sure it will be a pleasure working with you"

**HANAMURA RESIDENCE**

Yosuke grumbled as he held the ice pack to injury Chie inflicted on him, honestly, that girl needs to learn how to take a joke. His annoyance at Chie however was the least of his concern...

The rain poured down outside his window, all the electronics turned off, yet his eyes fixated on his TV. Which, with the stroke of midnight, began to flicker

He moved closer to it, to capture the image on the screen. The image was unfocused, but it looked to be a man with a jacket draped over his shoulders as well as a skull on his shirt. Yosuke couldn't help but feel like he'd seen him before. Before he take more in, the image vanished and the Midnight Channel ended for that night. But he saw enough to be sure, he had definitely seen that person on the news a few days prior.

Questioning whether the others had come to the same conclusion, he opted to call Yu

_Ring..._

_Ring..._

_..._

_RIIIIIIIIING_

_..._

"Is he asleep?" Yosuke questioned the long wait before his call was finally answered

_"Hello?" Yu spoke in an unusually quiet voice_

"Hey, did you see that?" Yosuke questioned

_"Yeah..." He simply stated_

"I think it was that Tatsumi guy" Yosuke added

_"Yeah...Kanji Tatsumi. He was on the news..."_

"Yeah...I think so too." Yosuke agreed, slightly confused by Yu's tone "I knew I saw him somewhere! It was on TV! He was on that special news report! He's one scary dude. He was even yelling at the camera to _Get bent!_"

_"Yeah...I saw it too"_

"A-Alright, so we finally have a lead. Let's all get together tomorrow, okay?"

_"Sure"_

"Oh, uh, one more thing..." Yosuke continued

_"What?" Yu asked sharply, surprising Yosuke with his tone_

"I...I may have let it slip to Chie about how you told me you don't have any feelings for them and then added the part about _how _you might get feelings for them...I'm sorry bro, I think I might have blown your chance with both of them"

_"It's alright..."_

"Huh?"

_"See you tomorrow"_

"H-" Yosuke tried to get out but Yu hung up before he could "What...what was that about?"

At the Dojima residence, a wide awake Yu merely stared the phone before angrily throwing it down, before curling up on the couch, his eyes still stinging from his tears...

* * *

So another short chapter, shortest one yet in fact, but once again it was just an intermission. We'll be back to regular length chapters next time

Also, KATSUYA IS HERE

_**PERSONA 2 IN THE HOOOOOOOOOOOUSE**_


	5. Take-Mikazuchi

**TAKE-MIKAZUCHI**

* * *

**MAY 15/EARLY MORNING/ YASOGAMI HIGH SCHOOL/ MAIN HALL**

"And thus it is with a heavy heart we say goodbye to Ms Ebihara" The Principal announced to the hall, a portrait of Ebihara along surrounded with a mass of flowers sat behind him "Once again, we have lost a dear and treasured student to us. Her young life robbed of her, not too dissimilar to recent passing of Ms. Saki Konishi in Year 3"

_"Not too dissimilar? You kidding me? She died the EXACT same way!"_

_"She was murdered...geez, what if they're targeting kids from this school?"_

_"Man, what if the murderer is a teacher?! I mean, if King Moron..."_

"Shut up damn it! Don't you have any respect?!"

"Mr. Ichijo!" A teacher snapped "Lower your voice!"

"Hey, Kou's back?" Yosuke noted

"And making a scene by the looks of things..." Chie noted

"Narukami-kun, do you know if Nagase-kun is back as well?" Yukiko questioned

...

"Narukami-kun?"

"Hmm?" He sounded "Sorry, I didn't hear you"

"Hey, bro, you okay?" Yosuke questioned "You're kinda out of it, you were like this when I called you last night..."

"I'm...I'm just tired is all" Yu sighed

"Bro, if anything's wrong, you can ju-"

"Hey, knock it off back there!" Morooka snapped, stunning the four into silence

**AFTERNOON**

Walking quietly through the school halls, Yu Narukami shuffled towards to his destination. He continued on until a particular sound perked his ears

" I just want you to know...I really did like you, back then"

_"That voice, Daisuke?" _Yu questioned as he tilted his head and witnessed his friend talking to a girl he didn't recognize

"What's gotten into you all of a sudden?" She questioned, a small silence from Daisuke followed

"Hey...have you been coming to practice because you..." He began

"Oh, he's here! Get outta the way, or he might get the wrong idea." She commanded as she slightly pushed Daisuke away as a young man approached them "Senpai, you're late!"

"Sorry about that." The new arrival apologized "Tearing down the goals took a little longer than usual today."

"So you'll take me somewhere nice for dinner then, right?" She giggled

"Sure, sure." He nodded before he noticed the soccer player "Daisuke...? What's up, man? I'll see ya at practice. Later."

"Daisuke... Thank you." She quietly muttered as she was lead away, leaving Daisuke alone

"Ya know, I feel pretty good..." Daisuke laughed to himself "Hey Narukami...you heard it all didn't you?"

"How did you-" Yu began

"I totally saw your reflection in the window, man" Daisuke smiled as he turned to him

"Ah...well, I didn't hear everything" He said sorrowfully

"Hey, you alright?" Daisuke questioned "You looking kinda off your game today"

"I'm fine...tell Kou to come to the roof after school, we need to talk to both of you" Yu said quietly before he walked off

"Naru..." Daisuke began but Yu had already departed

**AFTER SCHOOL/ SCHOOL ROOFTOP**

"And that sums it up..." Yosuke finished

"Wow...if I hadn't gone through it then I wouldn't believe it" Kou marveled "I mean, people getting thrown in TV's...Shadows, Persona's..."

"Yet, I can't deny it" Daisuke grumbled

"And we have to ask, do you any of you remember anything?" Chie continued "I know you'd prefer we didn't ask you this, but...can you recall anything from when you were kidnapped?"

"Honestly, no" Daisuke sighed

"Yeah, me neither" Kou said sadly "I figured something'd come back to me if I'd let it sit for a while, but honestly. All I can remember is hearing my doorbell and then waking up in the weird basketball court"

"All I remember is hearing my doorbell ring and then when I woke up, I was in the freaky arena" Daisuke added "Not much help, sorry"

"It's alright, the same happened to me" Yukiko comforted

"But this probably means that your visitors were your kidnappers..." Chie noted

"So why...why were we targeted?" Kou questioned

"We don't know" Yosuke sighed "We were originally under the impression that the killer only kidnapped women, but that changed with you two"

"We won't know until we confront 'em ourselves…but we can be sure of one thing. Some sick freak is kidnapping people and throwing them into the TV." Chie growled with a clenched fist

"And we're gonna catch them!" Yosuke piped "The Police are out of their league with this one, and with our Persona's, we'll track him down

"Persona's...those things that are kinda like the Stands from JoJo, right?" Kou questioned

"Huh? Hey yeah, I guess it kinda is like that" Yosuke smiled "Sweet, I guess that makes me the Jotaro of the group!"

"Please, you're lucky if you're the Polnareff" Chie grumbled

"Actually Chie, you have the Chariot arcara card, so that would make you Polnareff" Yukiko laughed

"What the-Yukiko!" Chie spat

"And long story short, we want your help" Yu finally spoke

"Our help?" Daisuke repeated with a raised eyebrow before it divulged into a smile "You got it, it's least we can do"

"Yeah, we're not gonna run away just like we ran away from our troubles" Kou piped happily before dipping his head down "I...I'm still kinda embarrassed you guys saw that side of me..."

"Yeah..." Daisuke cringed

"It's okay, everyone has that side to them" Yosuke waved them off "But you do have to confront those problems"

"Not a problem" Daisuke smiled "I already talked to my ex, and I felt...relieved, like I had finally understood what was wrong with myself, and I'm not afraid anymore..."

"Yeah, and I finally asked my family about whether or not they wanted me" Kou noted "My mom wrapped me in a big hug and said _of course we want you, you're our son!_ Even my dad, the old lady and even my little sister hugged me..."

"Then you two should have no troubles" Yosuke smiled

"Thanks for your help you two..." Yu muttered before he began to wonder off

"Hey...Yu, are you okay?" Yosuke questioned

"I'm fine, just tired, like I said" Yu quietly muttered before Chie stood in front of him

"Okay, dude what is wrong with you?" She sighed "You've been acting weird all day!"

"And you were like this when I called last night!" Yosuke pointed out "What's going on with you, man?"

"Yeah" Yukiko nodded "Narukami-kun, if you're troubled, just share it with us!"

"It's...personal" Yu sighed

"So what? You helped us with all our personal problems, you saw our most shameless thoughts up close and personal and we can't help you with yours?" Yosuke informed him

"That's right" Kou nodded

"So just share your problems with us already!" Chie shouted

...

"My parents are getting divorced"

The group froze as Yu twisted his head around and uttered those words

"Dude..." Yosuke whispered

"Yu-kun..." Chie muttered

"Oh...Narukami-kun, I'm so sorry" Yukiko apologized

"I'm sorry, man" Daisuke sighed

"We shouldn't have pushed on like that..." Kou softly muttered

"I just..." Yu sighed "I wanna be alone for a while..."

"Yeah...sure" Yosuke muttered as Yu departed

"Shit..." Daisuke mumbled as he rubbed the back of his head

"Yu..." Chie sighed before she began to follow him

"Hey, Chie...he said he wants to be alone" Yosuke stated

"But...we can't just leave him" She pleaded

"It's what he wants..." Yukiko said with a sigh

Chie merely stared at group intently...

**SANEGAWA RIVER BANK**

_Skp...Skp...Skp...Splash_

Counting the amount of skips the stone took across the water in the back of his head, he threw another, aiming for a higher number, but the next stone merely sank into the lake

"Damn" He muttered slowly as he went to pick up another rock, just anything to get his mind off it right now

"Hey there!"

Yu flinched slightly at the unexpected voice, cancelling his action of picking up another stone; he twisted around a met with a smiling Adachi

"Adachi-san?"

"I'm actually gonna have to ask you to stop that" The detective pointed out "Fishing's all find and good, but chucking rocks at fish is illegal here...for some reason, I don't really get it myself"

"Ah, I see...I'm sorry" Yu apologized as he dropped the rock

"Hey, you okay?" Adachi questioned, noting the vacant look in the boys eyes

"I'm fine" He softly muttered

"Woah! Clearly you're not!" Adachi said as he grabbed the boys shoulder and smiled "Hey, I'm a police officer, you trust me! Come on...let's talk..."

* * *

"So that's it, huh?" Adachi sighed as the two sat on the bench on the hill overlooking the small town "That's rough..."

"Yeah..." Yu sighed

"You know my parents got divorced too..." The young detective noted, earning a glance from the young boy "It happened just a few years ago...I didn't know what to do either, but for some reason, I just felt like it was my fault..."

"Yeah..." Yu repeated

"It's rough..." Adachi said with a sigh "To this day, I don't really know why they did...maybe the simple answer is they were unhappy"

"I know they were unhappy..." Yu mumbled "They've been unhappy for a long time...my dad's been unhappy since the day I was born..."

"Hey, don't say that" Adachi said comfortingly "I'm sure your dad cares for you"

"Then why did he have an affair?" Yu asked with a glare

"Oh..." Adachu muttered

"It happened right after I was born..." Yu spat angrily "It only just recently came to light when my mom found a picture of another woman tucked away in an old jacket, she asked him and he was drunk and...he just spilled everything...having a kid was just too much for him and he just wanted to fool around like he was a teenager...and then when he ended up getting another girl pregnant, he just ran back to Mom..."

...

"I'm sorry..." Adachi muttered "I...really don't know what to say..."

"It's fine, thank you Adachi-san" Yu said with a small smile "I guess...it was nice to talk to someone about this"

"It's alright, well I have to get back to work" Adachi said as he stood up and then looked behind him "But it looks like you can continue to talk to someone else..."

"Huh?" Yu questioned as he too glanced behind him and found a familiar girl wearing a green track jacket "Chie?"

"I'll leave you two alone..." Adachi said with a smile and departing wave

"Yu-kun...was everything he said true?" She questioned

"How did you even know I was here?" Yu questioned back

"I looked around, I checked Aiya, the riverbank, Junes, even your home, this was pretty much the only place left..."

"How did you get between places so fast?" Yu asked as she went to join him on the bench

"I had some cab fare..." She informed as she planted herself down "But...what you said...about wanting to be alone for a while...I'm sorry, I just..."

"It's okay" Yu said with a hint of smile towards her

"About...what you said to Adachi-san...I heard it too" She admitted, her head dipping down in guilt from her eavesdropping "So...your dad-"

"Yeah..." He quietly nodded

"I'm sorry...I shouldn't of listened" Chie sighed in shame, burying her face in her hands

"It's too late to unhear it" Yu hummed "So now you know, my dad cheated on my mom and somewhere out there, I got an illegitimate brother or sister..."

Chie looked at him for a few seconds, trying to find words, anything to say but she couldn't find them

"That's why I'm a bit hazy with Nanako calling me Big Bro" He explained

"Oh shit, I'm the one who started that" Chie cringed as she facepalmed

"It's alright" Yu waved it off "I wouldn't be like this if it wasn't for him...not that Mom's a prize either"

"Yu-kun..." Chie murmured, slightly stunned by his tone

"She's the one who...It's the same old shit...day in and day out, even when they're not even here..." He growled

"I get that you're angry...but you don't honestly blame your mom for your dad having an affair now, do you?" Chie asked him

"No...No" He sighed as he buried his head in his hands "It's just...they leave me...every single time and now they're leaving each other...and the reason is that my dad had an affair because I was born"

"Hey, this isn't your fault!" She snapped at him

"Yeah, blame your piece of shit dad!"

Realizing that voice _definitely _did not come from Chie, Yu's eyes peered up and spotted the quoter, Yosuke; accompanied by Kou, Daisuke and Yukiko

"Guys...everyone" Yu quietly muttered "When did..."

"I kinda texted them when I spotted you up on the hill" Chie admitted, but then twisted her head towards their guests "But I don't know how they got here so fast..."

"**Cab fare**" They all announced in unison

"That father of yours sounds like a real piece of work" Daisuke said with a vague hint of anger

"But it's like you guys just told me, even if you don't have any family, you always have someone!" Kou declared proudly

"Don't blame yourself for other people's actions" Yukiko said with a shot of a smile

"Guys..." Yu murmured and then was jolted slightly by a palm smacking his back

"I'm not gonna leave you..." Chie smiled

"And I ain't either, Partner!" Yosuke beamed as he placed his hand of Yu's shoulder

"None of us are" Yukiko stated as she, Kou and Daisuke also surrounded him

"Thanks Chie...Yosuke...guys" Yu smiled, closing his eyes to shield his stinging tears

The group merely smiled, deciding to spend time with their friend

Until the night fell and they all decided to head back home

"Have you had the steak skewers there?" Chie asked Yu with a point towards Souzai Daigaku as the two passed by "They hardly cost anything, the rumor is that the serve fake meat! It's just a rumor though"

"Excuse me"

The two stopped dead in their tracks, a tall man wearing a policeman's outfit stood before them

_"The police are here?! Then they really are serving fake meat!" Chie gasped_

"Y-Yes? I haven't eaten any of the meat today, I swear!" She panicked, confusing both Yu and the officer

"Lately, there's been several incidents with a group of teenagers bullying people around here" The officer informed them

"...Bullying?" Chie repeated, her tone suggesting disgust

"Extortion, if you will." He explained "Have you seen anyone suspicious?"

"I haven't" Yu said with a shake of his head

"N-No, no one in particular..." Chie added

"Hmmm, I see... Well, you two be careful then." The officer declared as he took his leave

"I'm glad it wasn't the meat...But still, bullying!?" She spat "What cowards, ganging up on the weak like that!"

"Yeah, it's disgusting" Yu agreed

"Yeah" She smiled, happy that he shared her opinion "Mowing down villains and saving the weak, a lone female fighter stands...to protect the town's peace, she throws herself into the battlefield, unbeknownst to all...! Ooh, yeah! That sounds cool!"

Yu let out a small chuckled at her actions

"Yu-kun, leave it to me!" Chie smiled

"Huh? It's Chie. Whatcha doing?"

Both prepped up at the voice, its tone was unfamiliar to Yu but Chie, judging by her expression, recognized it

"T-Takeshi...!?" She spluttered as a young man stood before the duo "W-Well...we're hanging out. Training! Y'know?!"

"Huh? When're you gonna graduate to being king of the hill?" Takeshi asked with a chuckle

"K-King of the hill...?" She questioned

"In kindergarten it was the Runt Gang, in elementary school you were an Ally of Justice..." He listed with a smile "Middle school, it was the Vanguards of the Lunch Revolution, wasn't it? Haha, so... What is it now? You a Protector of Earth's Peace?"

"Piss off and stop bugging her"

"Y-Yu-Kun!" She gasped at the boys uncharacteristic glare

"Oh, uhhh... I didn't mean that in a mean way." Takeshi apologized in panic "I'm Takeshi Kouno. I was with Chie up until middle school...I'm not gonna get in you guys' way."

"Hey, what are you...?" Chie questioned

"Oh, how's Yukiko-san doing...? Does she have a boyfriend yet...?" Takeshi questioned

"She's fine, and I don't think so..." Chie said slowly with folded arms and a raised brow

"I see. Cool, cool. She still good-looking? Maybe I should try for her again..." Takeshi nodded as he began to depart "I'll see you around. Say hi to Yukiko for me"

As he soon dissapeared from their view, Yu couldn't but help but stare at the saddened look on Chie's face

And for some reason, he just couldn't stand to see her like this...

"Hey, Yukiko still hawt?! Geh-haw! Maybe I should try fo' her again, eh?!"

...

Chie slowly creaked her head towards Yu, who had a big smile posted on his face. She lasted approximately one more second before she burst into laughter

"What, was that supposed to sound like him!?" Chie laughed hysterically before she managed to calm down "He isn't a bad guy, he's just a jerk...sometimes"

"Well, I just saw you looking sad and I figured I had to cheer you up" Yu admitted

"I think if anyone needed cheering up today, it was you, Yu-kun" Chie smiled back before a small blush appeared on her cheeks "Hey...were you worried about me?"

Yu merely chuckled at her expression

"I-I'm sorry. He really is rude, huh?" She apologized to him about Takeshi "Seriously... He was always starting at Yukiko..."

The way Chie stated that stirred something in Yu, Chie seemed to pick up on it too

"H-Hey, don't get me wrong. He's nothing but an old classmate to me! I've never even had a boyfriend! We're just friends, y'know...?" She panicked before getting quiet "We used to get that a lot, though..."

Yu could only stare at his friend's somewhat sad smile, feeling like he had learned something new about Chie

"Want me to be your first?" he asked

"WHA-!?" She gasped but then noted the boys expression and then laughed "Aw, come on Yu-kun, that's not funny!"

Yu merely laughed back at the girl whoses face was still red

"Let's head home." She said with a smile

**MAY 16/ AFTER SCHOOL**

"Kanji Tatsumi, huh? He definitely didn't look like the social type." Yosuke sighed

"Now there's an understatement. Isn't he really scary? Did you see the news special the other day?" Chie asked

"Yeah, I saw it." Yosuke nodded

"You mean the special on biker gangs? I watched it too." Yukiko added "Kanji-kun wasn't like that when he was younger, though…"

"You know him?" Yu asked

"Uh-huh, but we haven't talked to each other in a long time." She noted "His family runs a textile shop, and we've been a customer of theirs for many years. So I speak with Kanji-kun's mother from time to time."

"Oh, why don't we go there now? We might be able to talk to him in person." Yosuke suggested

"Sounds good. At the very least, we can ask if anything strange has come up lately." Chie agreed "I wouldn't want to run into him in a dark alley, but I'm pretty sure he won't fly off the handle in his family's store."

"Sounds good, I'll get Kou and Daisuke and we'll head over" Yu nodded

**TATSUMI TEXTILES**

The group casually entered the building. Some admired the entrancing patterns around the room while the others looked ahead to the old woman running the store, as well as the young man she was talking to

"Well then, if you'll excuse me, Ma'am" The young man said with a small nod

"I'm sorry I couldn't help more" The old lady apologized

"It's all right; you've given me plenty to think about. Thank you." He nodded once again before departing

"What's up with him…? Weirdo." Yosuke noted

"Oh, Yuki-chan, hello!" The old woman smiled "Your features are starting to remind me of your mother when she was young. How can I help you today? Are you out shopping with your friends?"

"Oh, um… Well, actually…" Yukiko began

Leaving the two to their conversation, the others pandered around the shop, merely to kill time; before Chie noticed something

"Hey, this scarf...I've been it somewhere before" She said, noting a particular piece of cloth on a table"

"Hm? Huh, you're right!" Yosuke added, also remembering the item "Where was that…?"

"Oh! It was that place! Inside the TV!" Chie said in eureka moment

"That's right! That room with those faceless posters…" Yosuke said with a snap of his fingers

"Then… it's that announcer's…" Chie muttered quietly

"Are you acquaintances of Ms. Yamamo?" The owner asked

"Uh, well, kinda…" Yosuke said with a rub of his head "Um… Did Ms. Yamano happen to have a scarf like this?"

"Yes, it was a special order she placed." The old owned nodded "She actually ordered a pair, but in the end, she said she only wanted the women's scarf. It left us with no choice but to sell this one separately.

"Oh man… There IS a connection to the first case…!" Chie panicked "What are we gonna do…?"

"H-How should I know…?"

"I thought with us getting involved, that you proved there was no connection to the first case" Daisuke noted

_"Hello! Delivery here for the Tatsumis"_

"If you'll excuse me" The old woman smiled before beginning to leave

"Oh, it's okay. We should get going." Chie noted

"I'll come again, Ma'am." Yukiko promised

"Is that so? Well, then please say hello to your mother for me." The owner smiled before disappearing from view

* * *

"It really is connected to the first case after all…" Yosuke sighed as the group stepped out

"But it's just a scarf. Would the killer target someone just because of that…?" Kou questioned

"Dammit, what's going on…?" Daisuke sighed

"Oh, it's Kanji-Kun!" Yukiko noted

"Whuh?" Chie sounded before she looked over and indeed, discovered the boy on the other side of the street, conversing with the young man that was inside the store

"Wha-Quick, hide!" Yosuke panicked before the group huddled in a circle to the side of the store

"Oh yeah, we're really fooling him here" Chie said with a roll of her eyes

"Oh what do you want from me?" Yosuke spat "How about you just jump under that cardboard box there and hide, Metal Gear Solid style?!"

"It'd be really great if we could hear them, guys" Daisuke sighed

"T-Tomorrow's fine with me…" Kanji nodded quietly "Huh? S-School? 'Course I'm going to school…"

"Then I'll meet you at the gates after school tomorrow." The young man nodded before taking his leave

"D-Did he was he was interested…?" Kanji wondered aloud before he began to turn around "He's a guy… and I'm a guy… But… he's interested in me…?"

"Oh shit, he's looking this way!" Yosuke panicked

"Uhhh...Uhhhh! So then I said, rub him? I barely know him!" Daisuke declared loudly as the group picked up on his ruse and managed to muster the best fake laugh they could before beginning to casually walk away

...

"Weirdo's..." Kanji spat before entering his home

* * *

"Did you get everything you were looking for, Mr. Shirogane?"

Naoto stopped in her tracks, peering at the owner of the voice

"Detective Suou" He noted "What can I do for you?"

"I was actually hoping to have a conversation with Kanji Tatsumi...I see you already have that covered" He smiled

"Then it appears we came to the same conclusion" Naoto noted

"Indeed, that was him on that, so-called _Midnight Channel_" Katsuya nodded as he pushed up his glasses "I may be old and need glasses but my eyes are not useless yet"

"Indeed..." Naoto nodded before she began to leave

"Very well, later, Shirogane-chan" Katsuya smiled

...

"Excuse me?" Naoto asked

"I said; later, Shirogane-san" Katsuya smiled back

"Very well..." Naoto said sternly before taking his leave

_"I have the feeling he knows more than he's letting on..."_

* * *

"Nice save, Daisuke" Chie sighed as the group walked down the street "I'd hate to be fleeing from him in terror"

"Don't sweat it..." Daisuke smiled

"What was the joke to that punchline, anyway?" Yukiko asked

"You really don't want to know..." Yosuke sighed

"Oh? Well it doesn't matter. But the one on TV last night was definitely Kanji-kun…" Yukiko noted

"Yeah… And I just realized something." Yosuke added "Remember the common points we were talking about? His mom fits the pattern. She's a woman, and she knew Ms. Yamano. But it was her son who appeared on TV…So what does that mean?"

"I'm pretty sure my mom didn't have anything to do with Ms. Yamano" Kou noted "But one thing's for sure, if Kanji appeared on the TV-"

"-Then he's a target" Yu concluded

"Yeah, patterns or not, it's people on the Midnight Channel who get kidnapped" Daisuke nodded

"Yeah, that's what it seemed like, based on the TV image… But his mother fits the pattern more than he does." Yosuke grumbled

"Oh… Maybe it's similar to my case." Yukiko piped up "If you think about it, my mother fit the victim profile more than I did. She was the one who dealt directly with Ms. Yamano… but I was the one who was targeted."

"Does that mean it'll be the kid again, instead of the mother? But if that's true, then the killer's motive makes no sense at all." Chie sighed "It'd have nothing to do with silencing witnesses or revenge or anything."

"You make some scary good points sometimes, Chie" Kou noted

"Y'think we're on the wrong track? Maybe even the first case had nothing to with grudges or revenge, I mean Namatame _is _dead after all..." Yosuke sighed "Or is there some kinda secret in the textile shop itself…? Argh! I'm totally lost!"

"But we can't ignore this." Chie sighed "Hmmm… Why don't we just go ahead and ask Kanji himself?"

"Maybe because he'd beat the piss outta us..." Yosuke grumbled

"Hey, wasn't he making plans with that weird kid a moment ago? Something about meeting up at school..." Daisuke informed

"I heard he's been skipping school ever since the new year started…doesn't that see a little suspicious?" Kou added

"Yeah, something did seem weird." Chie nodded "It's suspicious all right. There's something funny going on here…I can sense it."

"Sense? You sound like Teddie…" Yosuke scoffed "Still, we might find some clues.,,Alright… Let's try staking out both Kanji and his family's store. We definitely don't want the killer getting ahead of us!

...

Oh, and Yukiko, can I have your number?"

"Wha?!" Chie spluttered "Was this your plan all along?!"

"Dude, bold" Daisuke admired

"Uh, no?" Yosuke scoffed "I got everybody's number except for hers...and the Y section of my address book needs some filling out."

The group merely gagged as Yosuke let out a small laugh

"While we're on the subject, could you stop calling me at night just to tell dirty jokes?" Chie sighed "You really sound like a pervert."

"H-Hey! I'm trying to have a conversation with Yukiko here!" Yosuke spat

"Oh, that reminds me… I need to buy tofu on my way home." Yukiko noted

"Whoa…she didn't hear a word I said…" Yosuke sighed

"Actually, Chie, could I have your number?" Kou asked "Y'know for...the investigation and stuff"

"Hmm? Oh yeah, sure" She nodded as she pulled out her phone, the bright hue on his cheeks going unnoticed by her but not by Daisuke who merely sighed

"Okay then, the stakeout is set for tomorrow." She smiled "Hmm…stakeouts…tailing people…Whoo, I'm getting goosebumps!"

* * *

"Hey, Narukami!"

Turning around at the voice, Yu noted the presence of Kou quickly approaching him

"Kou?" He questioned

"H-Hey there...buddy" Kou said as he slung his arm over Yu

"W-What're..." Yu began

"Listen...I need you to do me a favor..." He said with a smile "Please, as friends and members of the investigation team..."

"S-Sure..." Yu agreed, a little confused

"See...I need you to put in a good word for me...truth is..." Kou began, his eyes darting away from his friend as a red hue took over his cheeks "I...I have this massive crush on Chie"

Yu proceeded to choke on his own saliva...

"Hey, what's with that reaction?!" Kou snapped "I-I figured now that we're working together on this case, and you know her so well...you could...y'know..."

"Put in a good word for you?" Yu repeated

"Yeah!" Kou smiled "Come on man, please! You gotta do this for me..."

...

"I...I'll see what I can do...?" Yu said with a raised brow

"Thanks man!" Kou thanked with a wide grin as he bowed "I really appreciate it!"

"No...problem?" Yu quietly muttered as Kou took his leave

_"He...likes Chie?" he thought to himself_

**MAY 17/ AFTER SCHOOL/ SCHOOL ENTRANCE**

"Has the target arrived at school?" Chie questioned as the group huddled around the school entrance

"Yes, Ma'am! Visual ID confirmed!" Yosuke declared "Target arrived in-zone near the end of his mess break, with mother-issued rations in hand. Current status: In the bathroom, fixing his hair. The target was acting nervous. I left my position before he had a chance to pick on me!"

"I wonder what kind of plans they made... It didn't seem like he knew that boy very well." Yukiko noted

"Well, I think there's something more subtle-Oh, he's here!" Chie began but cut herself off as both parties came into view, Kanji exiting the school and Naoto heading towards it

"I didn't keep you waiting, did I?" Naoto asked

"No, I-I just got here too..." Kanji said with a shake of his head as the two began to take their leave

"Wh-What in the world was that...?" Yosuke scoffed

"That's weird" Kou noted "Whoever the guy is, he came from _outside _the school"

"Yeah" Yu nodded "So I doubt he's a student here"

"Oh, a-anyways! We gotta hurry after them, or we'll lose them!" Chie panicked

"Okay... Then let's split up into two groups. One team will follow Kanji, and the other will stake out the shop." Yosuke suggested

"R-Roger that! How should we split the teams?" Chie questioned

"Okay...um, Daisuke, you're with me and Chie, we'll tail Kanji. Yu, Yukiko and Kou, you two hang around the store" Yosuke decided

"Um...actually, could I go with-" Kou meekly began

"Sure... that's fine with me." Chie nodded "Oh man, they're almost out of sight! C'mon, Yosuke! Daisuke!"

"So, I'm pairing up with you two...? Eh, okay." Daisuke shrugged

"Alright!" Yosuke nodded before turning to Chie "We'll need to pretend we're on a date to make it look natural!"

"YOU'RE WHA-" Kou choked

"Then what am I supposed to be, the third wheel?" Daisuke groaned

"Not in a million years!" Chie roared "There'll be no need for that if we stay out of sight. Sheesh... Let's hurry up and go!"

And with that, the three sped off

"I wonder if those two will be alright..." Yukiko wondered aloud before turning to her companions "Oh... U-Um, that leaves us in charge of staking out the textile shop.

So... shall we?"

**OUTSIDE TATSUMI TEXTILE'S**

"Sorry about the wait" Yukiko apologized before she handed both Yu and Kou a can "These are for you"

"Thanks, Yukiko" Kou smiled

"Thank you" Yu smiled

"Everything seems fine at the shop. I hope it stays that way..." Yukiko sighed "Do you think the culprit will come...?"

"I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a possibility" Yu noted

"Then we need to keep our eyes open. It would be scary if the culprit did show up..." Yukiko nodded "But if they do, I'll do what I can to help you catch them...You all saved my life... I don't want to be the only one doing nothing...I didn't even help you save Ichijo and Nagase-kun"

"Hey, don't worry about that" Kou waved her off "I know you still weren't ready to use your Persona"

"He's right, you weren't at fault" Yu added

"Sorry...I went on and on without realizing... I-I guess I'm a little nervous." Yukiko apologized "I've never chatted with boys my age like this before...Chie, of course, has no problem getting along with guys because of her personality...But I think she's had more fun hanging out with you guys lately."

It was then that Yukiko tilted the head and smiled at the two

"The same is true for me"

"Oh hey, Yukiko, could I have your number?" Yu questioned, causing the girls cheeks to turn slightly red "For the investigation"

"Oh, of course, we'll need to contact each other if anything happens" Yukiko nodded as she pulled out her phone

* * *

"Man, this is weird" Chie grumbled as the group huddled behind a tree

"Yeah... We definitely stand out." Yosuke sighed

"Like a sore thumb..." Daisuke added

"No, I mean THEM!" She quietly snapped at the boys "I get this weird feeling about them..."

"Weird? What about them's weird?" Yosuke questioned as they continued to peer at the duo

"Umm... I don't know how to put it..." Chie said with a stroke of her chin "Maybe it's just my imagination...Hey, how do you think the others are doing?"

"Beats me. For all we know, he's hitting on Yukiko as we speak." Yosuke shrugged

"Yeaaaah, no. He's not like you." Chie glared "Yukiko doesn't seem to be interested in that stuff anyway."

"I may not know him as well as you, but I'm pretty sure Narukami's not that kinda guy" Daisuke added

...

"Wait... are you saying he's interested in her?" Chie questioned "I thought you said he wasn't interested in me or Yukiko?"

"Huh!? Uh... I... wouldn't know..." Yosuke shrugged "Besides, like I said, his answer was pretty much a _maybe_. We don't really talk about that kinda stuff... Hahahaha."

Chie merely glared at him

"I-I seriously don't know! It's not like we've been hanging out that long, haha..." Yosuke shrugged as sweat began to drip down his forehead

"The hell're you three doing?"

Shock traveled up their spine as the voice cut them off, the three creaked their heads around and discovered their mystery speaker; Kanji

"Oh, well, you see..." Yosuke panicked "We're... We're just-"

"We're just some friends hanging out" Daisuke stepped in "What's the big deal?"

"Didn't I see you guys yesterday...?" Kanji glared

"A-Ahahahaha...! C-C'mon, it just so happened that we were walking behind you guys. Pure coincidence!" Yosuke continued to panic

"Yeah, so what's your game?" Daisuke glared

"Nagase!" Chie panicked

"Hey! Our houses are just over that way, so we'll be going now..." Yosuke said with a forced laugh

"Hey, you're following me, ain't ya?!" Kanji spat "First you were outside my house yesterday and now you're stalking me around town"

"It's small town, people run into each other a lot" Daisuke glared

"Oh don't mind him, he's just a little riled up since he lost a soccer match" Chie said in a panic as she attempted to pull Daisuke away, but it was clear the boy wasn't moving

"What's your problem, man?" Daisuke questioned "You tryin' to start a fight just because you don't like the look of someone?"

"That ain't it at all, shithead!" Kanji cursed

"Then why're you acting so strange?" Daisuke questioned

"W-Whoa, strange?!" Kanji spat as his face lit up "T-There ain't nothing strange about me!"

"'The hell you talking about, man?" Daisuke wondered aloud

"Now, now, children, calm down"

The four's attention was caught by the suit wearing man who approached them

"'The hell're you?" Kanji spat

"I'm Detective Katsuya Suou" The man greeted "Currently on loan to the Inaba PD"

"A cop?" Kanji growled "Whatever, I'm outta here"

"Hey, you-" Daisuke began as Kanji walked away

"Leave it be, young man" Katsuya instructed as he held his arm out in front of Daisuke "Don't initiate a fight"

"Yeah Daisuke, let's go" Chie nodded as she and Yosuke convinced him to leave with them

"Detective Suou..."

"Ah, Mr. Shirogane" Katsuya greeted as the boy began to approach "What can I do for you?"

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were following me" Naoto said sternly

"I assure you, I'm doing nothing of the sort" Katsuya assured her

"Yet for some reason, I feel like you're hiding something from me" Naoto stated with a slight glare "Either that, or you know more than you're letting on..."

"I assure you, Mr. Shirogane, that is simply not true..." Katsuya smiled

"I'm a detective, Mr Suou. I can tell when someone is lying" Naoto warned

"Oh my" Katsuya chuckled "My intent was not to offend you Shirogane-chan"

"Mr. Suou-"

"We _are _on the same side, Mr. Shirogane" Katsuya smiled as he departed "I feel like sometimes you forget that..."

Naoto merely let the man leave, his eyes never leaving the back of his head

* * *

"We regret to inform you the mission failed" Chie apologised with a bow, her group reforming with Yukiko, Yu and Kou in front of Tatsumi Textiles

"There was nowhere to hide." Yosuke sighed

"Well... let's wait here a little longer. Maybe Kanji-kun will come home" Yukiko suggested

"Yeah..." Chie nodded, and then as if God himself was a fan of comedic timing

"Huh...? What're you guys doing here?" Kanji spat as he appeared before the group "Why are you assholes followin' me around!? Dammit, what the hell's going on!?"

The group began to back away before Kanji's look of anger dissolved into one of exhaustion

"I ain't sayin' this is you guys' fault..." He sighed "But... Dammit...!"

"Hey, uh... mind if we ask something?" Yosuke asked nervously "Has anything strange happened to you lately?"

"Huh? Strange?" Kanji questioned before his anger returned "What's this "strange" stuff, huh!? Are you saying that I'm strange!?"

"Huh? N-No, I didn't mean-!" Yosuke panicked

"You sayin' I like dudes?!" Kanji roared "That's it! I'm taking you punks down!

And then they fled as fast as their legs could carry...

* * *

"Ughh...too much running" Chie huffed out of breath as the group finally slowed down

"Well, nothing happened today, so I guess everything's okay..." Yosuke sighed

"But it's already been a few days since he appeared on the Midnight Channel." Kou piped in "If this is anything like my case, it'll happen soon."

"Then we can't let our guard down..." Yosuke nodded "I think we should come back tomorrow to check up on him.

"Looks like we've got no choice..." Yu admitted "We should all head home..."

**EVENING/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"What?!" Yu questioned over the phone "Kanji's missing?!"

_"I had some calls to make for the inn, so I called the textile shop as well." Yukiko explained "When I spoke to Kanji-kun's mother, she told me that he left the house and hasn't returned since...she did say that this happens all the time, but... what do you think?"_

"This is not good" Yu sighed "We can't afford to take any chances"

_"I think so, too. He could be..." Yukiko sighed "It's going to rain again tonight. Maybe the Midnight Channel will come on. Then we'll know for sure if something happened to Kanji-kun or not. I'll make sure to check out the TV at midnight... Talk to you later."_

"Bye" Yu said quietly as he hung up the phone, and then the long wait began. The only interruption being a text from Kou

_"You put a good word in yet? ;)"_

_"Not yet, busy" He replied_

And then the clock struck midnight

And on came the TV. With a sharp image of what appeared to be a bath house

"HELLLLL~~~~O"

And Kanji, wearing nothing but a towel and a bright red hue on his cheeks

"Tonight, I'll introduce a superb site for those searching for sublime love that surpasses the separation of the sexes!" _Kanji _piped seductively "I'm your host, Kanji Tatsumi, serving you this scandalously special sneak-in report! Goodness gracious, just imagine the things that might happen to me there! Ooooh!"

Yu's jaw was practically on the floor at the moment...

"Well then, let's get this show on the road! Tootaloo!"

And with that, _Kanji _skipped away and the TV flickered off. And no sooner did his phone ring

"Hel-"

_"H-H-Hey!" Came the stunned voice of Yosuke "What the-! I mean...what in the actual fu-"_

"Yeah, I know..." Yu mumbled "But that was definitely Kanji"

_"Huh? O-Oh yeah, you're right! What in the world was that...?" Yosuke sighed "But... Dammit, it's just what we were afraid of...If only we'd held our ground and stayed there a little longer..."_

_Yu could only wait for Yosuke to regroup himself_

_"In any case, that place that was behind him... What do you think it is? A superb site for those searching for sublime love? I just don't get it!"_

"I'm pretty sure it was a bathhouse..."

_"Anyways... We'd better hurry and come up with a plan tomorrow!"_

**MAY 18/ AFTERNOON/ SCHOOL**

"Given the pattern so far, Kanji's already inside the TV..." Yosuke affirmed

"I wonder what the Midnight Channel really is..." Yukiko sighed

"At first, I thought I didn't know what to think, but when I gave it a try...I almost fell into another world..." Yu added

"If there's a rumor going around, that means a bunch of people are watching it." Yosuke sighed

"How did the rumor go...?" Yukiko questioned "If you stare into a turned-off TV on a rainy night..."

"No one in their right mind would try something that ridiculous, don'tcha think? Unless someone urged them to." Yosuke said "But if you actually try, it does work. And not just once.

If this rumor spreads and everyone starts watching the Midnight Channel..."

"It could cause a huge panic..." Chie concluded

"If Teddie is right, the missing people themselves create the stuff we see. So it's not random. It's specifically related to whoever goes missing." Yosuke confirmed

"Yukiko, Kou and Daisuke had shows like that too" Chie said with a sigh "But they don't remember anything from it"

"Um, this might be a little off subject, but..." Yukiko began "The culprit is probably watching the shows that come on... right?"

"No doubt. He's probably sitting back and enjoying-" Chie started then grinded to a halt "Wait a sec... I bet he IS enjoying it! "He's probably laughing his head off watching the "show" that comes on after he throws people into the TV!"

"Ahhh, I get it. Yeah, it's definitely possible." Yosuke nodded

"Ugh... Now when I think of the killer, I get this image of a total sicko!" Chie spat in disgust "_I wanna see everything about you, Yuki-chan_! Urgh, ugh, ugh!"

It was then that she paused in horror...

"Wait, so if people saw Yukiko's show, do you think people were watching what happened to me too!?" She panicked Oh, that is IT! That killer is dead meat! I'm gonna leave footprints all over his face! Guys! First we save Kanji! Then, we crush the killer and send him to hell! Got it!?"

"Yeah" Yu nodded with a smile on his face, feeling like the group had been pulled closer together

**TV WORLD**

"Oh... Yep. I think someone's here." Teddie nodded before a sad look took over "After last time, I take extra special care not to miss anything"

"Do you know where he is?" Chie asked

"I dunno." The bear admitted with a shake of its head

"We think it's a boy named Kanji..." Yukiko added

"I dunno..." The bear repeated

"What's wrong? Not feeling well?" Chie questioned, a hint of concern to her voice

"Well, I sniff and I sniff. But I still can't tell where the smell comes from." Teddie sighed

"Aren't you thinking too much about too many things?" Yosuke added in "I mean last time, you were wondering about who you really are and how long you've been here. Your head's empty to begin with, dude. Don't stress out over stuff too much."

"You're right..." He sighed

"Whoa... He's seriously down about this..." Yosuke quietly muttered

"If you can't figure out where Kanji is, we're in deep trouble." Daisuke groaned

"I know what might help! You should give me a clue about this Kanji person!" Teddie yelped happily "It's just a feeling I have. I think I could concentrate better with it. Do you have anything that could give me a good understanding of him?"

"Well, he's a freshman at our school, his family runs a textile shop, he was on TV-" Yu began to list

"We don't know jack..." Yosuke sighed

"Wait, there was something" Daisuke interrupted "I talked to him earlier and he got all freaky when I asked him why he was acting so strange"

"Hey, yeah!" Yosuke piped with a snap of his fingers "The instant I asked him if anything strange happened to him lately, he was all; _you calling me strange_?!"

"Hmmhmm, a complex..." Teddie nodded

...

"Th-That's it!? That's all I have to go on? You're working me to the stuffing..." Teddie moaned "Oh well... Then I'll open my nose up real wide and sniff real hard!"

The group merely stared as Teddie inhaled a big whif

"Hrmmmm..." Teddie groaned but then popped up "Oh, I think I found something! It feels like our target! Is this it!? Follow me!"

* * *

"I don't understand, what do the police want with my Kanji?" Ms. Tatsumi questioned

"We're concerned M'am" Katsuya noted "There have been many disappearance around this area"

"He always wanders off, but I never know where." She sighed "He's always like this..."

"I understand Ma'am" Katsuya nodded "I have a younger brother, he was always getting into trouble too"

"My Kanji really is a good boy" Ms. Tatsumi died "He really changed when his father died"

"I'm sorry to hear that" Katsuya said solemnly "I lost my parents too, at an early age"

"Then you know what my boy's gone through" She sighed "After his father left us, he changed his looks, he wanted to look strong so he changed his appearance to those gang members he saw on TV"

"Maintaining respect through fear..." Katsuya muttered

"You know, there was a small boy who came asking about him not too long ago." Ms. Tatsumi noted "I talked to him too, but I haven't seen him around lately."

"That would be my associate, Naoto" Katsuya smiled "Well...thank you for time Ma'am"

"You're welcome" The woman smiled as Katsuya departed

"Detective Suou" came a voice as he exited the Textile store

"Detective Shirogane" Katsuya greeted "This truly is a small town, we run into each other at almost every corner"

"I see you too have noticed the disappearance of Kanji Tatsumi" Naoto stated as he adjusted his hat "I also see you've also theorized that he's the latest victim of the kidnappings"

"There is no theory about it. Mr Shirogane" Katsuya smiled "I've merely done my research"

"As have I" Naoto sternly declared "Tell me, does the term _Masked Circle_ mean anything to you?"

...

"How do you know that name?" Katsuya muttered

"They were a cult in Sumaru City, some fifteen years ago" Naoto began "I understand you were on the case...perhaps that's why you requested the transfer here..."

Katsuya's eyes merely bore holes into Naoto's eyes

"You're not the only one who's done his research" Naoto stated with a tip of his hat as he departed

"My, my..." Katsuya smiled "You truly are something Mr. Shirogane...I'm glad they informed me of you..."

* * *

"Is it just me... or does the fog here seem kinda different?" Chie groaned as the group arrived before what looked like the entrance of a bathhousse

"My glasses are fogging up." Yukiko groaned

"Oh! That reminds me!" Teddie jumped as he pulled out two pairs of glasses "Kou-chan, Daisuke-san, these are for you!"

"Huh?" Daisuke questioned as he was handed a pair "Glasses?"

"They'll allow you to see through the fog" Yu informed them

"Whoa!" Kou gasped as he placed them on "And here I wondering how you guys were navigating through this place while I was almost blind..."

"No kidding" Daisuke said in awe as he placed his pair on

"Man, it's hot in here." Chie groaned "This place is like a-"

_"C'mere, pussycat..._

_Oh... Such well-defined pecs..._

_There's no need to be scared..._

_Uhhhh..._

_Now, just relax..."_

"Was that Kanji?" Yu questioned

"W-Wait a sec! I-I don't wanna go!" Yosuke whined

"Is Kanji really here, Teddie?" Kou questioned

"The nose knows!" Teddie stated proudly

"We're... really going in here...? Urgh, I can already feel the sweat rolling down my back..." Yosuke groaned

"That's becasue it's so hot..." Chie groaned "But anyway, we can't go in today"

"Huh?" The group questioned

"Hello?! Kou and Daisuke don't even have any weapons!" Chie spat

"Oh yeah..." Yosuke noted

"Weapons?" Kou questioned "Why do we need weapons? What about our Persona's?"

"Persona's are an extension of yourself, its strength matches yours" Yu explained as he brandished his katana "If you're unarmed, you might as well go in without any armor too..."

...

"Armor?" Daisuke questioned

"Okay, wow" Yosuke sighed "We really need to take you guys shopping"

**EVENING/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

The group managed to make it to Daidara before closing time, securing a set of chainmail for Kou and Daisuke. Given their speed and agility and talent with a ball, the group decided a set of a small blades were the ideal for both of them. They later fixated the multiple blades onto a basketball and soccerball as well as attach a small chain to the balls and to a metal glove for Kou and a metal gauntlet for Daisuke

_"A ball with spikes on a chain?" Daisuke questioned "Seems kinda impractical"_

_"Hey, Yukiko uses a _fan_" Yosuke scoffed_

And now Yu sat in the Dojima home, on the other side of table from Nanako

"Oh...ummm" Nanako fidgeted

"Something wrong?" Yu questioned, noting her expression "You can ask me anything, go on"

"Okay!...ummm" Nanako mumbled "Are you an only child?"

...

"No...no, I'm not" Yu stated quietly

"Oh...then do you have a little sister?" Nanako practically whispered

"I don't know..." Yu admitted, confusing Nanako "I've never met my younger sibling..."

"Oh, but you have me now, so..." Nanako smiled cheerfully "A while ago, Dad told me that our family won't get any bigger. But now I'm your little sister now, big bro!"

...

"Yeah..." Yu smiled "Yes, you are"

**MAY 19/ EARLY MORNING**

"Yo, Yu!" Yosuke cried as he caught up with Yu en route to school "According to the weather report, we won't have to worry about the fog for a while. Let's keep cool, like usual. We can save the day and still keep our skills sharp!"

"That's a good plan." Yu nodded

"Yeah, it's not going to do anyone any good if we get anxious." Yosuke agreed "Let's be sure to use the time we have until the next foggy day to our advantage so we can save him for sure!"

**AFTERNOON/ SCHOOL/ DRAMA CLUB**

"I know it's a big early, but how about we stop for the day..." The drama club president suggested

"No!" Yumi snapped "The bell hasn't rung yet! You want to quit early? You're slacking off! You need to take this more seriously!"

"Y-Yumi, you shouldn't work too hard…" The Vice President suggested

"I feel like I'm the only one who cares about this club! Stop holding us back!" Yumi yelled "The reason you never get any lead roles is because you act like that!"

"Yumi!" The President gasped

"Oh…" Yumi quietly muttered

_"It is time to go home. Please, don't forget anything." _The voice rang from the School's PA

"L-Look, it's time to go home now, anyway. Let's all just stop for today, all right?" The Vice President noted

"Okay." The club members agreed as they began to depart, while Yumi stood there, silent and unmoving

"Was I...wrong when I said that?" She asked Yu

"You had a point but you came across pretty harsh..." He noted

"Y-Yeah, I'm just doing my best, huh..." Yumi nodded to herself. "I'll…keep practicing. At the riverbed or somewhere…Anywhere but at home."

"You want me to help?" Yu asked

"No… But thanks." She smiled "There's nobody at my house. Mom's been going straight to the hospital after work, to see _him_...There's no real point to going home now…When I'm by myself at home, I can't stop thinking about all that stuff. The past… Why things turned out the way they did… You know.I thought I'd forgotten them…Sorry… I've just been whining"

"Okay" Yu nodded with a smile

"Thanks, I don't like to show off my bad side" Yumi nodded "I have my acting. That's how I can keep going. No matter what happens, I will go on! Yeah, that's right! Thank you, Yu-kun! If I was by myself, I'd have been down in the dumps for a while, I just know it. So, um… I'm glad you were here…I hope you'll stick around for a while longer."

"I will be" Yu smiled

"I'm going to stop somewhere on my way home and practice some more there." Yumi said as she began to depart "I finally got a lead role! I have to make sure I can do it!

* * *

_**"It's time"**_

_"Whatd'ya mean?"_

_**"It's time for your involvement"**_

_"My time to shine, eh? 'Bout freaking time"_

_**"Is all in readyness?"**_

_"Not quite, I couldn't get _it, security is too tight_"_

_**"I see...well no matter, than can come later when more of **_**them **_**become involved"**_

_"Didn't think you were one for improv...Come to think of it, how are you even calling me? How did you know I was here and when the hell did you get a cell phone?"_

_**"I see all and I'm using a payphone"**_

_"Those two statements do not gel together.."_

_**"Come to Inaba as soon as possible...it's time for Act 2 to begin..."**_

_"I'll get a train, better not steal it though, they'll think I'll have a _loco_-motive_

_..._

_Get it?"_

_**"Yes...I see..."**_

_"What's the matter? Lose your _train _of thought?"_

_**"Just come here as soon as you can**__"_

_"Pretty strict, though I'd expect nothing less from a nutjob throwing people into TV's"_

_..._

_**"I expect your arrival within a few days. DO NOT disappoint me"**_

_"Yeah yeah" _He scoffed as he hung up the phone "Inaba...where in the _flying fuck _is Inaba?!"

**TV WORLD/ SAUNA**

"I don't like this place..." Daisuke mumbled as the group stepped into the steam filled bathhouse

"This place is really steamy" Teddie noted as he joined the group "So why do I feel a chill down my fuzzy spine? I think I caught a cold... My nose is totally useless too. Kanji-kun, where are you!? Answer us!"

...

"Oh yeah, Sensei! Can I ask you something?" Teddie asked as he turned to Yu "Why is it so steamy here? Does it have something to do with Kanji-kun? I don't really get it... Do you know what it is, Sensei?"

"I think I get the hints..." Yu stated

"Ah, that's my Sensei! Is there anything you don't know!?" Teddie piped happily but then shivered "Be careful Sensei..."

"Alright" Yu nodded as the group summoned their Persona's "Let's go!"

"Raijin!" Kou called his Persona as he slammed his fist down on a tarot card

"We don't do that until we encounter Shadows!" Yosuke yelled

**FLOOR 5**

"He's here!" Daisuke cried as the group charged forward into a steam filled room "Ah hell! I can see his ass!"

"Wha-WOAH!" Kou cringed as they appeared behind Kanji who was wearing nothing but a tight fundoshi

"Kanji!" Chie cried out as the boy turned to them

"Oooooh, my my! Thank you for your undivided attention!" He piped "At last, I've penetrated the facility! These images are coming to you live from inside this steamy paradise! But I've yet to have any charming encounters. Could this hot fog be the cause? It's like steam rising from sweat! Mmmm, my body's tingling with excitement!"

_**MEN ONLY!**_

_**KANJI TATSUMI IN ROSY STEAMY PARADISE**_

"Okay" Yosuke coughed "What in the actual fu-"

"Yukiko's show was like this too" Chie noted

"IT WAS?!" Yukiko shrieked

"You weren't parading around dressed like...that" Yu informed her

_Hahahahahaha..._

"What in the-" Kou questioned as laughter came from nowhere and filled the room

"Those voices again..." Chie noted

"Wait, are they louder this time?" Yosuke asked

"These voices..." Yukiko muttered "I was wondering whose they could be, since it's only the victim in here... Is it the people watching outside?"

"You mean everybody who's watching the Midnight Channel? They're reacting to the _show_?"

"Yikes... If people are watching Kanji-kun now, he's gonna be a legend in a way he never intended" Chie yelped

"Well, it's really his Shadow, not him. But normal people won't know that..." Yukiko noted

"The Shadows are getting really restless!" Teddie gasped

"That elusive thing I truly yearn for... Will I finally find it here? Teehee!" _Kanji _laughed "Well then, onward and deeper to reach further realms of romance! Let's get going, dammit!"

"Wait!" Yu cried out as _Kanji _scampered away

"Kanji-kun!" Yukiko also called out

"That was his other self, hiding his true feeling" Teddie informed "But it's way different than Yuki-chan's shadow...at this rate, it might end up getting _bear _naked"

"Okay, we really need to have a word about these puns" Daisuke chimed in

"_Bear_...naked...?" Yukiko muttered

"Oh man... here it comes..." Chie sighed

...

"Uh... Was I supposed to laugh?" Yukiko questioned

...

"Let's call it a day..." Yu quietly muttered

* * *

"No...I get it" Dojima nodded

_"How is he?"_

"He was a bit shaken up obviously, but he hung out with some friends and it looks like they managed to cheer him up"

_"Oh? I see, I'm glad he's finally made some friends"_

"They're great kids..." Dojima noted as he switched the phone to his other ear

_"I'm glad Yu is finally happy...he never really had a chance to get used to staying in one place" _

"Sis...how is it...getting along?"

_"I've told him I want a divorce as well as full custody of Yu. He was crushed, of course...am I doing the right thing Ryotaro?"_

"Are you still going to work together?" Dojima questioned

_"I don't think I can...but I can't just leave" _

"Why not?" Dojima questioned "You always claimed that job didn't pay enough for all the travelling..."

_"Ryotaro..."_

"Motoko...listen to me" Dojima began

**MAY 21/ SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"Alright! Today's the day!" Chie enthusiastically cheered

"You're more excited than usual" Yu chuckled

"Oh? Big Bro?" Came a small voice approaching them

"Nanako?" Yu questioned

"What are you doing?" Nanako questioned

"Hm? Training, of course!" Chie puped

"Training..." Nanako repeated "Who are you fighting with, Chie?"

"Hmmmm...Myself... I guess...?...Heheh, just kidding!" Chie giggled

"Wow, cool!" Nanako beamed

"Y-You think...? Hahaha..." Chie laughed again

"Oh, a grasshopper"

"AHH WHERE!?" Chie shrieked, startling both Yu and Nanako

"It...just landed on your back" Nanako muttered

"Ahhhh! Get it off me!" Chie screamed

"Okay! Okay!" Yu yelped as he picked the insect off Chie's back

"You don't like grasshoppers?" Nanako asked

"I'm no good with anything with thin, jointed legs! Or anything creepy or squirmy!" Chie quietly squirmed "Ack, now I can't get 'em out of my mind! I can't stand those things!"

"But they're cute..." Nanako muttered

"You're like Yukiko...Oh, see, 'cause Yukiko's fine around bugs." Chie explained "But I just lose it...kinda stupid huh?"

"It's...cute" Yu smiled

"Th-That's not true!" Chie yelped, yet somehow looked happy "It's not..."

"A lot of kids in my class don't like bugs." Nanako informed her "It's not just you. Don't worry!"

"Nanako-chan... Ooh, you don't know how happy that makes me. Thanks!" Chie beamed "C'mon, you wanna train too?"

"Okay!" Nanako smiled

"Let's start with form. I'll teach you a kata..." Chie started

* * *

"I'm gonna get over my fear of bugs. I don't wanna look like a sissy next to Nanako-chan!" Chie claimed to Yu, the two having sent Nanako home before it got dark "All I have to do is think of them as Shadows! Then I'll be able to grab a whole fistful!"

...

"I-I just gave myself goosebumps..." Chie laughed "G-Getting used to bugs might take a while, but I won't lose to Shadows!"

"I'm sure your kicks will blast them off to space" Yu laughed

"Damn right!" Chie cheered "Want a demonstration?"

"I'll take your word for it" Yu smiled

"Well I better get going" Chie noted as she checked the time on her phone

"Yeah" Yu began but then recalled Kou's words

_"See...I need you to put in a good word for me...truth is...I...I have this massive crush on Chie"_

_"I-I figured now that we're working together on this case, and you know her so well...you could...y'know..."_

_"Come on man, please! You gotta do this for me..."_

"Hey...Chie?"

"Yeah?" She questioned

...

"Be safe walking home, okay?"

"You don't need to worry" Chie smiled "Bye Yu-kun"

"Yeah..." Yu quietly muttered "See ya..."

**MAY 22/ JUNES**

"Welcome, one and all! Choice salmon, 59 yen a slice, just as advertised!" Yosuke cried out "And while you're at it, how about some cheese? Direct from Italy and just 298 yen for today only..."

"How did you talk me into this?" Yu sighed, donned in a Junes apron

"Because you're getting paid!" Yosuke informed him "Restock this shelf, too!"

**FOOD COURT**

"Phew, I'm dead tired..." Yosuke sighed as he sat down beside Yu "They decided on the sale at the last minute, and Dad was bugging me to find helpers. I told him I didn't have time for that, but he wasn't listening. But hey, I'm glad you were there! Thanks."

"No problem" Yu nodded "Thought I would've appreciated if you told me what you needed when you called me up and begged for my help"

"Haha, sorry 'bout that!" Yosuke laughed as he scratched his head "I thought if I told you, you wouldn't come... Sorry, dude."

"Oh, Hanamura." Came an unknown voice to Yu. Looking up, he discovered two girls he didn't recognize "What's with the crowd today? It's way busy. If I'd known, I woulda skipped out."

"Please don't. You got a bonus for today, right?" Yosuke groaned

"Yeah, a whole 500 yen." The other girl scoffed "I'm trying to save up! Gimme a raise."

"Well... I don't think I can help you there..." Yosuke sighed

"What's the point, then?" The first girl spat "At this rate, my graduation trip'll be somewhere in Japan. Maybe I should ask my parents to pay for it."

"Why don't you find a guy to pay?" Her friend questioned

"Like Saki did?" She grumbled

Yu's eyes widened at that as Yosuke bit his lip

"Was it during our second year? When Saki eloped, I mean."

Apparently she got with a college guy who came home, and went off with him. But she came right back, saying she'd save money and leave on her own."

"Huh? You mean she was dumped?"

"Who knows... She started working here to save money, didn't she?"

"You know us high school girls can make easy money if we really want to."

"It doesn't matter." Yosuke muttered to Yu" It's just hot air. I'm not letting it get to me. It's sad to be talked about like that, though. We're the only ones who can avenge Saki-senpai. We're special. We're the only ones. So... there's no need to bother with outsiders."

...

"Yosuke" Yu mumbled

"I think it's good you came along." Yosuke sighed "Because of you, I was able to make it this far."

Yu sat there, dumbfounded at his friend before nothing the girls had left

"What a pain." Yosuke sighed "Oh, uh, not you..."

**MAY 23/ TV WORLD/ SAUNA**

"We're here!" Yu shouted as the group finally arrived at the top floor

"There's no stopping, not even now!" Yosuke yelled

"Yeah, let's save him!" Daisuke agreed as the group booted the door down and yelled in unison

"**Kanji!**"

...

_"Whoa! Kan-chan, did you make this one yourself?"_

_"You're really good at this!"_

_"Kanji-kun's so talented!"_

"Your purse, here, I fixed it"

"T-T-Thank you, Tatsumi-kun"

_**"EW?! THAT'S DISGUSTING"**_

_**"WHOA, YOU'RE INTO THAT STUFF, TATSUMI?"**_

_**"AREN'T PLUSHIES FOR GIRLS?"**_

_**"AREN'T YOU A GUY? THAT'S WEIRD"**_

_**"YOU'RE A BOY Y'KNOW!"**_

_"Shut up..."_

_**"YOU'RE A BOY!"**_

_"That's..._

_I_

_..._

_I'm..."_

"**Now then, let's can the lies**" Shadow Kanji smiled "**You hate lying to other peole and to yourself, don't you? What's wrong with being who I am?**"

"I..."

"**I'm who you want to be**"

"That's not true!" Kanji roared

"**I hate girls...they always act so high and mighty, so selfish. They get angry, they get sad, they talk behind your back, they rat you out, they toy with you, they **_**LIE **_**to you. They treat me like I'm so kind of freak and when they don't think I'm listening; they'll laugh and say**

_**You like to sew? What a queer!**_

_**You draw? That's so unbecoming of a MAN!**_

_**You're a boy, y'know!**_

_**You're a boy!**_

_**A BOY!**_

**WHAT THE FUCK IS A BOY SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE, HUH?! WHAT IS BEING A MAN?!**

**Girl's...they terrify me**"

"I'M NOT AFRAID!" Kanji screamed at the Shadow, whose eyes began to glow yellow and shade began to cover its face

"_**Men**_** are so much better, they don't say stuff like that at all...**" The Shadow smiled "**Men are **_**sooooo **_**wonderful**"

"Cut that out, you bastard!" Kanji snapped "Who the hell do you think you are?! Running around, saying _this _shit, with _MY _face?!"

"**I'm you"** Shadow Kanji laughed "**And you're me...but you already knew that, didn't you?**"

"Y-You're wrong!" Kanji yelled "Someone like you...there's no way...you're...you...**YOU'RE NOT ME!**"

"**HAHAHAHA!**" The shadow laughed "**I'M **_**YOU**_**. WE'RE ONE IN THE SAME!**"

Massive metal objects, shaped into the masculine symbol crashed into the ground beside Kanji as his shadow grew into a massive being, white on the right side, black on the left. Its..._male area_ covered by a loincloth. While the half-nude shadow stood atop it, covered in a bed of roses

"**I AM A SHADOW**" The shadow grinned as Kanji stood on in horror "**I AM TRUE TO MYSELF. THAT'S WHY I'LL GET RID OFF ANYTHING THAT GETS IN MY WAY!**"

"Jiraiya!"

The Persona flew overhead just as The Shadow swung down one the masculine-symbol blades, blocking it from cutting Kanji down

"Is this Kanji-kun's true self?" Yukiko questioned

"No, it's just gone really freakin' crazy!" Yosuke yelled as Jiraiya struggled with the blade

"Are you okay?" Yu asked as he ran to Kanji

"Y-You guys" Kanji muttered

"**W-What is this?**" Shadow Kanji spat before going on the offensive "**Even you people thought I was **_**strange**_**! From the bottom of your hearts, none of you see me for who I am!**"

"Jiraiya!" Yosuke called as his Persona was blown back

"**I've decided that from now on, I do want I want! I ACT HOW I WANT!**"

"Izanagi!"

"Jiraiya!"

"Tomoe!"

"Konahana-Sakuya!"

"Fujin!"

"Raijin!"

"**I'LL NEVER LOSE TO YOU!**"

...

_"Stop...stop it..._

_Just...stop!"_

"What the hell?!" Yosuke cried out at shadow began to crack

"What's going on?" Kou questioned

"**Ahahaha! Such a passionate approach!**" It laughed as the crack began to heal "**You'd all make such wonderful boyfriends!**"

"Is it because Kanji's still rejecting it?" Chie asked

"Get ready, it's getting back up!" Daisuke warned

"**Just...accept me...I don't care who...just...someone anyone...**"

"Stop it..." Kanji muttered

"**SOMEONE JUST ACCEPT ME!**"

The group stared dumbfounded as the Shadow's words as well as its heartbroken expression

_"This isn't...who I am _

_I'm...I-"_

"Raijin!" Kou called out as the Persona fired a bolt of lighting at the vunerable shadow

"Fujin!" Daisuke called out his Persona too as Fujin blew back the Shadow

...

"It's pathetic...that thing" Kanji groaned as he pulled himself up

"Kanji-kun!" Yukiko gasped as the boy stood up

"That...thing...it's me" Kanji muttered before he lifted his head to roar at the other him "I knew all along there was someone in like inside me

...

Hey, get up already! If you really are me, then it's gonna take more than a light breeze to keep you down! I ain't that big of a wimp!

It...It's ain't an issue of guys or girls...I'm just scared shitless of being rejected...I guess...I guess I'm just a coward who decided to make everyone hate him to keep them away"

"It's...breaking" Yu noted as the blades in the Shadows arms began to crack

"There ain't no point in not just coming out and saying it" Kanji groaned "Let it all hang out!"

"Should we...help him?" Chie questioned

"I don't think it matters" Yu answered "It looks like...he wants to take care of this himself"

"So this...is a real friendship between men" Yukiko smiled

"Hmmm...not quite" Chie smiled back

"I hear you Kanji..." Daisuke said loud enough so Kanji could hear him "I know what it's like...scared of being rejected, but that look in your eyes...that's a good look"

"You being me ain't some kind of big revelation!" Kanji cried out "You're me...and I'm you

Now get over here, you asshole!"

The shadow began to flicker away, before turning into particles of bright blue energy and in it's place was large, black creature with a skeleton design and a blade in the shape of a lightning bolt in his hand

_Kanji Tatsumi has faced himself. He has obtained to overcome lifes hardship. The Persona; __**Take-Mikazuchi**_

_"Yeah...I'm no one else_

_but me..."_

"Whoa!" Daisuke cried out as the boy began to stumble, catching him before he crashed into the floor

"Looks like he's unconscious" Yosuke noted "Come on, let's get him outta here"

**JUNES/ ELECTRONICS STORE**

"It's… It's nothin'..." Kanji groaned as he refused to be helped up "Heheh… I feel great… It's like my mind's all cleared up…"

"Glad to hear it." Yu smiled

"Hey… About what just happened" Kanji muttered

"We can talk about it some other time" Yu told him

"Yeah..." Kanji nodded

"My Shadow was pretty much the same" Daisuke told him "Well...not...like that, but our problems were pretty similar"

"Seriously?" Kanji questioned

"We'll explain everything later. You need to take a rest now." Yukiko said

"We'll be waiting for you at school." Chie smiled

"School…? Sure, if I ever feel like going." Kanji shrugged

"I'll take this guy home." Yosuke nodded "If anyone asks, I'll say I found him like this. Come on, let's go"

Kanji burned a hole into the outstreched hand with his glare

"In...in your own time" Yosuke gulped

* * *

"Well that ended well" Chie smiled "And it was so much faster this time too"

"We literally had double the amount of Persona users than last time" Yu nodded "I'm just thankful I didn't get sliced open this time"

"It's nice to see you happy" Chie smiled "You know, after a few days ago..."

"When I found out my parents were getting divoreced" Yu noted

"Yeah..." Chie mumbled as she rubbed her arm "I...I didn't want to say"

"It's okay..." Yu smiled "I know it's happening...there's no point of running away from it"

"No..." Chie noted "There isn't"

"There's no point hiding from it, I'm reminded everytime I look in the mirror" Yu stated

"Huh?" Chie questioned

"I'm told I look like my mom and my hair is similar to my dads...maybe I should grow it out" Yu said as he inspected a lock of his silver mane

"Well, nothing wrong with changing your look" Chie added, picturing Yu with a long flowing mane of silver hair down to his waist

_"Yeah, get that image out of my head now..."_

"Yeah...think I'll do that..." Yu nodded "Maybe I'll stop covering my forehead"

"Y'know, now that you mention it, I've never seen it" Chie stated before grinning "You hiding a third eye up there or something?"

"Nope" Yu smiled as before lifting up his fringe "Just skin"

"Wow, so you do have eyebrows" Chie giggled "And they're...black? D-Do you dye your hair?!"

"No" Yu scoffed "My dads hair is black, so my eyebrows are black"

"Man, you're weird" Chie grumbled "Though I'd expect nothing less of a guy with _silver _hair"

"Yeah..." Yu laughed "It's...good we manged to save him...especially after we failed to save Ebihara..."

"Kou and Daisuke really helped us" Chie smiled

"They did" Yu nodded before letting out a sigh "Kou's a really great guy..."

"Daisuke too" Chie agreed

...

"Hey...Kou...wanted me to ask you something" Yu noted

"Yeah?"

_"I...I have this massive crush on Chie"_

"He...he...

...

He wanted to ask what you liked more, pudding or steak?"

"What?!" She spat "Steak! Of course steak! I don't even like pudding! Geez!"

"Okay, okay" Yu laughed

"Why did he even ask that?" Chie asked "Seems kinda odd..."

"Yeah...maybe he's thinking about treating you in the future" Yu smiled

"Whoa, really!?" Chie shot up in excitement

...

"Yeah" Yu laughed "Yeah..."

_DING_

"Looks like you got a text" Chie noted "Well, I better get going Yu-kun"

"Bye" Yu waved as Chie departed. He pulled out his phone and examined the text. It was from Kou

"_Still waiting 4 u to put that good word in ;)"_

...

_Click, Click, Click_

**MESSAGE DELETED**

Yu sighed before placing the phone back in his pocket

"What am I even..." Yu groaned

* * *

"Yes, it seems like they saved the Tatsumi boy" Katsuya spoke to the person on the other side of the phone "It was most interesting, an entire world inside a TV..."

...

"Yes...yes, it is anomaly similar to the Dark Hour from two years ago...yes" Katsuya nodded "I understand, yes...yes"

...

"Yes, I will continue my investigation" Katsuya confirmed "It's only a matter of time before we discover what's really going on...I see...very well...yes...yes...alright then. I understand

Goodbye, Ms. Kirijo"

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Oh, I forgot to tell you." Dojima stated as the group sat around, having dinner "Remember that Kanji Tatsumi guy I told you about? You know, the one who went nuts on that news special. His family's shop called in to report him missing, but now he's been found. I thought I'd let you know, since you go to the same high school."

"Oh? That's good to know" Yu smiled _"Even if I already knew"_

"Yeah...one other thing…" Dojima muttered "Some people have seen you around that textile shop lately, I hear. It's not the kind of shop students normally visit. Just what kind of business did you have there…?"

"Oh?..." Yu muttered "Yukiko Amagi...she dragged us all to go shopping with her"

"Oh… That Amagi girl? That's right, her family's inn buys their stuff wholesale…" Dojima nodded with a sigh "Fine. Just don't get yourself in over your head, okay?"

"Are you fighting again?" Nanako asked

"No, we're not" Yu smiled at her

_KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

"Ah, there we go" Dojima said as he pulled himself up

"Are we expecting someone?" Yu questioned

"Yes" Dojima stated as he headed towards the door "I didn't say anything, because...well I guess I just wanted to surprise you"

Yu raised an eyebrow as the door opened and he heard footsteps enter the house

His uncle popped back into view, behind him was a woman in suit, skirt and her grey hair tied back into ponytail with bright silver eyes

Yu's jaw dropped as well as his chopsticks

"Yu..." She smiled happily

"M-Mom?" He stuttered

* * *

"Come on boss, let's leave" One thug scoffed

"Yeah, we already got this punks money" Another scoffed

"Ain't no fuckin' way!" Their leader spat "This little turd only had 1000 yen on him"

"That's all I have" Their victim groaned

"Shut it!" The thug roared as he slammed his fist into his victims gut "Who said you could talk Takeshi?! This ain't like Middle School when that bitch Chie was around to protect you!

"I...I" Takeshi groaned before another fist met his face

"Yikes!"

The three thugs piqued up at the sound of an unknown voice, a figure began to approach them, his features covered by shadow

"'The fuck're you?" One spat

"This ain't a place for you" The other scoffed "Piss off"

"Wow, I finally find a train to this shithole and one of first things I see is some limp dicks beating a guy over money?" The figure laughed

"The fuck?" The leader spat as they dropped Takeshi to the ground "You better choose your words wisely, motherfucker"

"Tell you what" One of them laughed as he stretched out his arm "Give us your wallet and we'll forget you were here"

"No can do" The figure shrugged "I just got a gold filling in my teeth, so I'm afraid I just put my money where my mouth is

...

HAHAHA! GET IT?!

COME ON! LAUGH!"

"This fuckers nuts" The leader scoffed as he cracked his knuckles "You say you just came to Inaba? Come on boys, let's give him a nice welcome"

"Yeah..." The two others smiled

"Oh...well now..." The figure shrugged

_**SHING**_

"W-What the fuck?!" The leader cried out as the figure drew out two long Katana's from behind his back

"Okay, bitches" The boy smiled sinisterly, the light now illuminating bright red hair, his large X shaped scar on his head as well as his manic smile "It's _Sho _time"

* * *

So; even more changes! The..._mystery _of why Yu was so upset is..._revealed_...I guess? Katsuya is actually a member of the Shadow Operatives. Yu's mom is in Inaba and **SHO FREAKING MINAZUKI IS HERE**

So..._THIS _is where the big changes start. You'll notice that I _introduced _the killer in this chapter and he and Sho are in cahoots

So, is it still the same killer from in the game? YOU'LL HAVE TO KEEP READING TO FIND OUT

_*Insert Evil Laugh here"_

You'll notice I adapted out the whole search for info on Kanji that would lead to Yu's first real interaction with Naoto. Like I said, this fic is full of (to quote David Bowie)

**C-C-C-C-C-CHANGES**

Anyone notice the little references to the Hiimdaisy comics? I know you did

Now then; I know the inclusion of a certain pairing can make or break a fic for some people so I won't drag you around, I don't think it's even subtle now that the pairing I'm going for is YuXChie. If you don't like this pairing; then feel free to stop here

Now; one more thing. I'm trying to get this fic done ASAP. I intend to make this fic only 20-25 chapters long. I don't want to drag this on and end up with writers block which is what happened to my Bleach story The Nueva Espada.

Plus, my laptop is FUCKED. But it has all my stuff on it so I'm trying to get it down before the damn thing explodes.

Fucking thing doesn't even have spell check...


	6. Signs of Love

**SIGNS OF LOVE**

"M-Mom..." Yu stuttered as he shot to his feet "How...what are you do-"

"Oh, Yu!" she cried as she ran over and hugged her son "It's only been a month but I've missed you so much!"

"Mom!" Yu groaned "You're crushing me!"

"Oh, I'm sorry!" She panicked as she let him go

"Nanako, this is your Auntie Motoko, Yu's mother" Dojima introduced the little girl to their new guest "She's going to be staying with us for a while"

"Huh?!" Yu and Nanako questioned in unison

"I couldn't do it" Motoko said quietly "I couldn't stay there with _him _anymore, so Ryotaro said _quit your crappy job and come stay with us, come back to your hometown_. So here I am"

"You're...staying here, with us?" Yu questioned "Wait, you quit your job?!"

"That's right" She nodded "I'm here Yu...and I'm never going away"

...

"Huh!?" Yu screamed

* * *

_"YOUR MOM?!"_

"Yeah" Yu sighed "She just...showed up outta nowhere in the middle of dinner"

_"Whoa...I mean..." Yosuke stuttered "Well...are you happy about this?"_

"I...I don't know...I mean, I wasn't even expecting to see her until next year" Yu murmured "I...think I'm just in shock"

_"You have said some...less than kind things about your folks" Yosuke noted _

"Believe me, I meant them..." Yu nodded "I-"

_KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

"I have to go"

_"It's cool bro, see you tomorrow" Yosuke confided as he hung up _

"Come in" Yu said as he placed his phone on the table

"Yu?" His mother greeted as she stepped in "I'm just here to say goodnight"

"I see...where are you sleeping Mom?" Yu questioned

"Ryotaro got some blankets, so I'll be sleeping on the couch" She confirmed

"You can have my futon if you like, I'll sleep on the-" Yu began to suggest

"No, no" She laughed "I'm not kicking you out of your room"

"It's fi-"

"No, no" Motoko smiled "I...I've dragged you around the entire country, I don't want to kick you out of somewhere you feel like you belong"

"Mom?" Yu questioned

"Remember, when you were little? How you loved flying on the airplanes" Motoko giggled as she stepped into the room "You were always so excited that you got completely tuckered out and fell asleep, but when you woke up, you'd sit on your fathers lap and you'd stare out the window until we landed"

"I...don't really remember" Yu mumbled

"Remember when your Grandpa Raidou would visit and tell you all those stories about he defeated The Soulless Army and the evil King Abandon?" Motoko laughed "That old coot..."

"Yeah..." Yu quietly confirmed

...

"You look so much like your father, it's scary" Motoko mentioned "Your hair...it looks just like his, with my color"

"I'm going to grow it out" Yu informed her "I-"

"I haven't been the best mother"

...

"Mom?" Yu asked

"But don't worry...there's no more dragging you away with me" She smiled "I'm not taking you away from Inaba, I'm not dragging you away from all your friends"

"Mom..." Yu repeated like it was the only word he knew

"Goodnight" Motoko smiled as she departed

**MAY 24/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"YOUR MOM?!" Chie shrieked

"Believe me, Yosuke had the exact same reaction" Yu sighed

"Whoa...I mean..."

"Whoa?" Yu repeated

"Yeah..." Chie nodded "She just popped out of nowhere?"

"Yep, she quit her job and came all the way out here" Yu confirmed "It's her hometown apparently"

"Whoa, so you're kinda from here?" Chie questioned before she smiled "I guess you're a country bumpkin after all"

"Thanks" Yu laughed

"This must be a lot for you, huh?" Chie muttered "All this stuff about your parents moving a lot, their divorce and your mom showing up outta nowhere..."

"Yeah..." Yu nodded with a sigh "I...I'm not sure what to think"

"It's alright, we're all here for you" Chie nodded "Just like you were all here for us"

"Thanks Chie" Yu smiled "You really are a great person"

"Sheesh" She laughed with a playful punch to his arm "You're making you blush"

"You're really cute when you blush"

"WHA!?" She gasped before Yu began to laugh "Aw come on you!"

"Okay, okay!" Yu laughed as Chie playfully slapped him

But then his expression soured as he remember his promise to Kou

_"I...owe that favor to Kou"_

"There it is again!"

"Huh?" Yu questioned, startled by Chie's outburst

"Every time we've talked as of late, you smiled and then your face just drops" Chie pointed out "What's going on with you?"

"It's...well..." Yu sighed _"Suppose I'll put that good word in..."_

"You see...K-"

"You're in love with me aren't you?"

"WHAT!?" Yu practically exploded before Chie began to laugh

"See? You're not the only one who can crack a joke, Yu-kun!" Chie giggled

"Chie..." Yu chuckled

"Well, I need to get going, I promised Yosuke I'd help out as Junes" Chie declared

"Lemme guess, he called you up, begging for help and promised you'd get paid" Yu listed

"What the-Oh that jerk is just using me isn't he?!" Chie growled

"You do get paid..." Yu noted

"Yeah..." She sighed "Well if it's good money...can't really complain. See ya Yu-kun"

"Bye" Yu waved until the girl departed

...

"Son of a..." He sighed angrily "Why can't I just tell her about Kou?"

"Oh Narukami-kun"

"Huh?" Yu questioned as he turned around to the person who called his name "Oh, Yukiko?"

"Hello" She greeted "Did I interrupt?"

"No, Chie just left" He said, noticing the book under Yukiko's arm "Bought a book?"

"Yes, it was the last copy too" Yukiko nodded Iit has details on a bunch of different job licenses…"

"So you're really serious about wanting to get out of here..." Yu muttered

"Uh-Huh…that's right." She admitted, a bit embarrassed "Inside the TV… The 'other me' said she didn't want to inherit the inn…I think… those were my true feelings. So I've decided to be a little more true to myself…I… I refuse to inherit the Amagi Inn! When I graduate… I'm leaving this town!

...

I said it.

…

I said it! Haha…"

Yu was surprised by Yukiko's claim but the smile on her face showed him that this was what she truly wanted

"So in order to live on my own, I'm thinking of getting a job license." She told him "I was thinking something along the lines of an interior decorator…what do you think?"

"Sounds good" Yu smiled

"It's cool, isn't it…?" Yukiko happily smiled back "But it's hard. It costs money to get a license…

And of course I can't tell Mother…If only there was a part-time job I could do discreetly…

"There's a board with jobs listen just up there" Yu said as he pointed up the streer "There's one where you can make envelopes in your room…

"Really…!? I'll go check the board, then!" She smiled before she dashed off "Thank you Yu-kun!"

...

She stopped dead in her tracks

"Is it..."

"It's okay if you call me Yu" He smiled

"Thank you!" She smiled as she took off again

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"I'm home" Yu declared as he slipped off his shoes

"Welcome back Big Bro!" Nanako smiled

"Huh?" Motoko questioned

"Oh, Nanako's quite taken with him" Dojima explained "She looks up to him like a brother"

"Oh I see...that's...nice" Motoko quietly muttered

"I already had a talk with him about..._that_" Dojima informed her "He's okay with it"

"Well if he's okay, then so am I" Motoko smiled

"It's nice having him around, we're practically one big family" Dojima smiled

"Look at you...haven't seen you smile in a long time" Motoko grinned at her younger brother

"Yeah...oh, that reminds me" Dojima piped up as he walked over to Yu "Here"

"U-Uncle?" Yu questioned as Dojima handed him a wad of money

"They say you did well on that last exam. I heard about it when I was investigating." Dojima explained "It's great to see you're taking care of your responsibilities, even though you just moved here. I need to act like an uncle every so often and give you some spending money. But don't spend it all in… Nah, you can use it however you like."

"T-Thank you" Yu bowed before stuffing the money in his wallet

"Are you just giving away Money?" Motoko questioned

"What? I'm just being a good uncle" Dojima laughed

**MAY 25/ BEFORE SCHOOL**

"No word on Kanji yet, huh?" Daisuke asked as he and Yu walked down the path to school

"Nothing that I know of" Yu told him "But we did just save him a few days ago..."

"Yeah, it took me a little while to recover" Daisuke sighed, before noting Yu was holding out something to him "What's this?"

"Pork and rice, my mom made it, take it" He said "She made way too much for just myself"

"Whoa, you serious?" Daisuke questioned, Yu nodded and Daisuke accepted the container "Thanks man...oh wow! It's got that scent that only a mothers cooking has!

...

Wait, your mom's in town? What?!"

**AFTERNOON/ JUNES**

"Thank you for helping me Yu-kun" Yukiko smiled as the two stepped into the grocery department

"No problem" Yu smiled

"Why are there so many different types of food…?" She sighed as she examined a shelf "Even eggs come in so many varieties…"

"Are you...making dinner at the Inn?" He asked

"No! I'd never dream of it! I don't think my food's nearly good enough to serve to the guests." She said, despite her happy smile "I was just thinking of practicing my cooking since I've decided to leave town. Eating out all the time is bad for you, right? So I'm going to get some practice while I can!"

"Makes sense." Yu nodded

"Oh, yes. I was thinking that maybe you could taste-test my food sometime" Yukiko wondered "I want someone to eat it and let me know how it is. I thought I'd improve quicker that way…And knowing you, I'd get an honest opinion…W-Will you…?"

"Sure" He nodded once again, getting an odd chill down his spine...

"Really!? Thank you!" Yukiko smiled happily "When I obtained the power of Persona, I thought, 'I can do it…' I used to think I couldn't do anything on my own, but maybe I really can…I depended on others up until now, but from this point on, I want others to depend on me…I'll do my best!"

Yu smiled, feeling his friends iron will

"Ok then, um…Where do they sell lobsters?" She asked

**MAY 26/ MUSIC ROOM**

"Senpai! I'm going to the river to practice!" Ayane declared "It's so peaceful there. There's even a little roof nearby, so I can still practice when it's raining.

"O-Oh?" Yosuke stuttered

"I've been going there every day, even when we don't have rehearsal. I need all the practice I can get! It may be a lost cause, but... I might as well try. It's all thanks to you, Senpai. If I'd been on my own... I would've given up."

"It's nothing, really..." Yosuke laughed as he rubbed his head

"Senpai... I...I'll make it a performance to be proud of... for both of us..." She blushed "I want to make you smile."

And with that, she dashed off

"That was...strange..." Yosuke noted

* * *

"Yu-kun really is a nice boy isn't he?" Yukiko said out of the blue

"Huh?" Chie sounded as the pair walked home "What brought this on?"

"He agreed to help me with my cooking" Yukiko smiled "He's been helping out a lot"

"Really? Well that really is just the kind of person Yu-kun is...hey wait, when did you start calling him Yu-kun?" Chie questioned

"He said I could yesterday" Yukiko explained

"Oh..."

"Why?"

"Oh no...nothing" Chie laughed it off

"Ah, Yukiko, there you are" Yu stated as he appeared before the pair

"Oh Yu-kun!" Yukiko smiled "We should get going!"

"Yeah" He nodded "Hey, Chie"

"Hey Yu-kun" Chie smiled

"I think maybe, you can try my cooking today" Yukiko suggested

"Sounds good" Yu nodded, once again getting an odd chill

"Bye Chie!" Yukiko waved as she and Yu departed

"Yeah...bye" Chie quietly muttered as the two disappeared from sight

**MAY 27/ DRAMA ROOM**

"Yumi?" Yu asked "Are you okay?"

"Huh? Oh yeah...I'm fine..." She quietly muttered

"I...I think you're lying" Yu stated, matter-of-factly

"Yeah...Yeah I am..." Yumi sighed "Dad's...Dad's almost gone..."

"Oh..." Yu quietly noted

"A few months...maybe not even that..." She quietly muttered

...

"I still hate him"

"I know you do" Yu nodded "You know...my dad did some pretty despicable things too"

"Huh?" Yumi asked

"And if he came back and begged for forgiveness because he was dying...I honestly wouldn't know how to feel either" Yu sighed "I'm...I'm saying I understand everything you're going through, but I'm just saying; you're not the only one with a shitty dad in the world"

...

"Is that what you meant when you said we weren't that different?" Yumi questioned

"Pretty much, yeah" Yu admitted with a small laugh

...

"So...how are you handling your dad?" Yumi asked

"I honestly don't know..." Yu sighed "I want to hate him...and I...part of me does...part of me hates his guts for cheating on my mom...but at the same time, he's still my dad

...

I don't know if I can ever forgive him..."

...

"Thank you...Narukami" Yumi smiled tearfully

"For what?" He questioned

"I'm not even sure" She laughed "But I do feel better..."

"Then I was glad I could help..." Yu smiled back before departing, completely missing the affectionate look Yumi was giving him

**MAY 28/ POLICE STATION**

"This is odd..."

"Eiji?" Dojima questioned the old mortician

"There no markings on the body" Eiji informed as the cadaver of Ai Ebihara was laid out on the autopsy table "No cuts and bruises..."

"Nothing in common with the Konishi girls body..." Dojima muttered

"Even Mayumi Amano had small bruising around around the shoulder area, Saki Konishi was raped...but none of this is present of Ai Ebihara's body" Eiji pointed out "Each victim has shown different signs of assualt...but not her"

"So there's no real pattern?" Adachi's voice rand

"What the-Adachi, get in here!" Dojima yelled

"I'm fine here, thank you" Adachi stated from the other side of the door

"Dojima-san" Eiji stated "This is dangerous, there are no signs of motive, no signs of any pattern, this killer may just be murdering for fun"

"I believe I hold the answer" Came a voice that entered through the doors

"Detective Suou..." Dojima noted

"I believe I may have found a pattern" Katsuya stated

"You've what?" Dojima questioned

"Mayumi Amano, Saki Konishi and Ai Ebihara all have one thing in common" Katsuya began

"They all appeared on TV prior to their disappearance" Came another voice

"Hello, Detective Shirogane!" Adachi piped happily as the short detective entered the room

"I see we've both come to the same conclusion" Katsuya smiled

"That's a pretty vague motive" Dojima noted "How-"

"All of them were on Prime Time News" Katsuya explained "Mayumi Amano's affair was covered the day before she murdered, Saki Konishi was interviewed on finding her body before she was murdered and Ai Ebihara was interviewed on a feature covering the Yasogami High Basketball Team"

"My Nephew...is...on that team" Dojima muttered

"With this in mind, we should keep an eye out for interviews on the news" Naoto suggested "Should anyone be interviewed on the news, an eye should definately be kept on them"

"I agree" Katsuya nodded "It may a wide margin but it's definately better than nothing"

"This is...we'll see what we can do" Dojima sighed

"We appreciate your efforts" Katsuya smiled

**JUNES FOOD COURT**

"So what're you gonna eat?" Yosuke asked as the two sat down

"Hey, Hanamura!" Came a voice, Yu looked up and recognized them as the two girls from the other day

"What is it today?" Yosuke sighed

"How come Kazumi can take the day off and we can't?" The gaurdy girl spat

"Huh?" Yosuke questioned

"We told you before! We can't work Saturdays!" The snooty one complained "So when we refused, they said they were going to fire us! I don't get this!"

"Hey, I talked to the manager..." Yosuke shrugged "Senpai... Have you two been taking absences without leave lately?"

"I-I just forgot to come..." The gaudy one defended "Besides, that's not the point! What're you going to do about this!? I have a date that day!"

"How come you're favoring Kazumi, huh!?" The snooty student scoffed "You were like that with Saki, too!"

"Huh?" Yosuke questioned as Yu's eyes widened

"Don't try to hide it! We all know!" Gaudy girl shot "You liked Saki and treated her special!"

"I don't think Saki-senpai has anything to do with this subject..." Yosuke quietly muttered

"Yeah, it does!" She spat once again "You told the other workers to take it easy on Saki too, didn't you? You think you can do anything just because you're the manager's son!?"

"So it's Kazumi now that Saki's dead!? Don't even bother, she has a boyfriend." The other spat "Didn't you get it!? Saki didn't like you! We heard so from her! She may have acted that way, but..."

"Shut up!"

"Y-Yu..." Yosuke uttered in awe at the boys outburst

"Wha-Who are you!? You shut up!" The snooty one snapped

"You're the ones who should shut up!" Yosuke snapped as he practically leaped out of his chair "What do you know about Saki-senpai?! She didn't do things half-assed like you! She looked lazy, but she worked hard! She talked bad, but she was good inside!"

Yosuke bared his teeth as his eyes began to sting

"So she hated me? I knew that! She's not here anymore! I'm left behind!" He roared before his head dipped down and his voice lowered "Just...leave me alone."

...

"Wh-What the heck...?" The gaudy stuttered

"Let's go." The snooty one said as she pulled her friend away

...

"I just blurted out a buncha crap, huh?" Yosuke sighed

"I know how it is..." Yu said

"How can you understand, when I don't...?" Yosuke questioned sadly

"They were badmouthing Saki...it's just being back home just before I moved here" Yu sighed "My parents sure liked to mouth off at each other"

"Damn... Another pathetic display from Yosuke, huh?" Yosuke laughed at himself "I'm sorry man, I know you're going through more than I am...Thanks, though. Hearing you say that stuff to them... It made me happy."

"No problem" Yu smiled

"I don't want to... I really don't want to, but I'll go talk with Dad..." Yu sighed "At this rate, those two are gonna quit... I should tell him and apologize...I don't know... What do I want to do? I don't get it, even though it's my own future...Sorry, but I'll see you later, Yu."

"It's cool" Yu nodded as Yosuke took off

"Yu?"

"Hmm?" Yu questioned as he turned around "Oh...Mom?

...

Wait...Mom, why are you wearing a Junes ap-"

"Ta-dah" Motoko smiled as she twirled around "I figured it would be rude of me to mooch off Ryotaro so I got a job here at Junes"

"You...work here?" Yu asked

"Mmm-hmm" Motoko nodded "What do you think? Can your mother help you with your shopping today"

...

"I'm actually just heading out" Yu stated

"Oh..." Motoko muttered as her son took off without another word

**MAY 29/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE **

_"Hey, it's Kou"_

"Aw shit"

_"Huh?"_

"Oh umm...nothing" Yu defended "What can I do you for"

_"Listen bro...I hate to drag this on...but that good word...have...you...y'know, put it in yet?"_

.._._

_._

"Ummm...Me and...Chie don't really hang out a lot so-"

_"Dude! You and Chie hang out all the time" Kou whined over the phone "Listen, did she like...reject me or something? Did she laugh and go _I'd never date that guy!_...Oh man, if she-"_

"No, no" Yu sighed "I just...I..."

...

I don't really know how to bring it up"

_"What? Dude, that's lame..." Kou sighed "It can't be too hard, right?"_

"Right" Yu sighed "Uhh...I gotta go man"

_"S'cool, see ya" Kou said "And remember, make me sound good to her! Okay?"_

"Yeah...I hear ya" Yu nodded as he hung up

...

Yu closed the phone and slowly slipped it back into his pocket

...

There was the murky feeling again

The feeling when ever he thought of actually putting in the good word

It dampened his mind, it almost felt like it hurt

But it would vanish and be replaced when a warm fuzzy feeling he got when Chie entered his mind

...

"Maybe...maybe I'm just latching on to the first girl whose shown me affection" Yu sighed

_"No...a lot of girls have hit on me in the past..."_

"Maybe...maybe..." Yu groaned before he buried his face in his hands "I can't...Kou likes her"

...

_"Do...I like he-"_

"Oh Yu!" Motoko's voice came from downstairs "One of your friends is here!"

"Coming" Yu called out as scampered down the stairs and arrived at the front door

And saw someone he didn't expect

"Kanji?"

"H-Hey" Kanji waved as Motoko left the two alone

"So, you're feeling better?" Yu asked

"Yeah...umm" Kanji said with a small laugh "Thanks...for...y'know"

"I'm just glad you're safe" Yu smiled "We managed to get you before your mom sent out a search party"

"'Cause I was gone a few days, the cops are keeping an eye on me and Ma...it's annoying" Kanji sighed "But then again, you guys were a pain at first too, and all you were trying to do was protect me...hey...umm...M-Mind if we go somewhere and talk for a bit?"

"Sure" Yu nodded as he slipped on his shoes "Hey...how do you know where I live?"

"Oh...umm...let's just say, for an unknown reason, I keep a list of Policeman's houses" Kanji admitted with a rub of his hair "And I heard you were the Nephew of the detective who lived here, so..."

"You egg houses, don't you?" Yu asked

"O-Only when they really piss me off!" Kanji defended

**HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"I love it here..." Kanji stated as he and Yu walked up the path "Ever since I was a little kid...every looks small from up here, makes you feel like you're on top of the world...

Huh?"

Kanji and Yu reached the top of the hill, coming across the benches as well as the patio, and discovering a small child sitting alone

"Hey kid, what'cha doin' all along out here?" Kanji questioned

"Umm...I'm not doing anything" The child defended

"Then why do you look like you're about to cry?" Kanji asked as he took a seat next to the boy

"I...I lost a doll" The boy admitted "It was a bunny Sana-chan lent to me...a knitted one, but then Taka-kun yelled at me, saying it was girly"

Kanji stared intently at the boy

"So he threw it on the ground and then stomped on it" The child tearfully explained "And then he said _If you're a real man, then throw that bunny into the river_...so I did...and the bunny was flushed away...

I-I have to give that bunny back to Sana-chan! She loves it so much!"

"Then why're you out here?" Kanji asked the crying child "You just running away from your problems?"

"What should I do?" The child asked "What _can _I do?!"

...

"Christ, you're one big idiot, ain'tcha Kid?" Kanji sighed before pulling something out of his pocket "Think you can replace it with this?"

"Huh?" The child questioned before he saw what Kanji was handing out to him, a small knitted bunny "T-That's amazing!"

"It's...nothing really" Kanji blushed

"Where'd you buy it?! I want one too!"

"T-That ain't important!" Kanji snapped

"You should tell him the truth" Yu suggested "There's nothing to hide..."

"How do you even..." Kanji began but then gave up with a sigh "Fine...I...I made myself..."

"Y-You made it yourself?" The child questioned

"Hey, if that's a problem then give it back!"

"Wow, you're so cool, Mister!"

...

"Huh?" Kanji questioned

"Hey, can you make one for me and another for my mom?!" The child beamed "She loves stuff like this!"

"Err...O...k?" Kanji muttered

"It's a promise! I'm gonna go this to Sana-chan!" The child smiled before talking off "Bye Mister! Thank you!"

"I'm not really a _Mister_, kid. I..." Kanji mumbled as the kid left "Heh..."

"Feels good, huh?" Yu smiled as he sat beside Kanji

"Yeah...I think it's great" Kanji smiled as he gazed at his hand "My skills are pretty useless...but maybe I can do something good with them...Heh..._Thanks_, he said...pretty useless...but still..."

* * *

"I wonder if Narukami is holding out on me..." Kou sighed

"What do you mean?" Daisuke questioned as the two exited the Yomenaido bookstore

"I don't know, he still hasn't helped me with the Chie situation" Kou explained "He still hasn't put in that good word for me yet"

"You're relying too much on Narukami's help, maybe he's not helping out because he wants you to do it yourself" Daisuke suggested

"Maybe..." Kou sighed "What'd you buy anyway?"

"A comic. I was feeling kinda nostalgic when I saw it 'cause I used to have it…" Daisuke noted before he stared at his purchase "Wait… this isn't what I…I got the wrong one. Instead of Rubber-Armed Pitcher Hero, I bought Lovely Witch Detective…"

"How do you even make that mistake?" Kou scoffed before noticing a familiar face nearby "Oh, Chie!"

"Hey" Chie waved as she passed through

"Ch-Chie-san." Kou stuttered "Uh… What are you doing?"

"Training!" She beamed

"Training…?" Kou questioned

"You're the man, Chie." Daisuke smiled

"Hell no!" She spat before she began to take off

"Hey, come on man" Daisuke said with a nudge to Kou "Talk to her"

"Oh...umm" Kou gulped before turning to the girl who was still walking away from them "Umm...Ch...Ch...I...I'm...Hello...I

Argh, damn it! I can't"

"Geez, what's with you?" Daisuke sighed "You know if you don't act one day, someone else is going to snatch her up,,,"

"Aw come on..." Kou sighed "I don't know what to do"

"Maybe it's best if you hold off until all this is done" Daisuke suggested "With all this going on, maybe there won't be any time for this kinda stuff"

"No...I have to tell her how I feel" Kou sighed "I know it's not just a little crush...I love her"

"Geez..." Daisuke sighed "Don't get all mushy on me..."

"S-Sorry..." Kou apologized

**MAY 30/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"I was just thinking of making some coffee." Dojima told Yu "All we've got is instant, though. How do you take it?"

"Coffee?" Motoko questioned "He doesn't drink coffee"

"I'll try it" Yu nodded "Um...how about with Cream and Sugar?"

"Heh, just like Nanako" Dojima chuckled

"Dad, the news is starting." Nanako informed her coffee before noticing what her father was doing "Oh, coffee! Can I have some?"

"Sure thing. Plenty of sugar and cream, right?" Dojima smiled

"You let Nanako-chan drink coffee?" Motoko spluttered

"Relax" Dojima chuckled

"You're right...you're right..." Motoko sighed "It's your house, your rules"

"It's fine, I make damn good coffee" Dojima laughed "When I got married, Chisato made me promise one thing. She said this is all I have to do around the house. But nobody else can do it. So...well, you know. It's habit now."

Motoko stared quietly at her brother

"This is the only promise I can really keep these days..." Dojima muttered "Well... anyway. Sit over there sis, I'll make you some too"

_"And now, our next story. On the outskirts of Okina today, a woman bicyclist was hit by a car and died on the scene."_

...

"Nanako, turn the TV off." Dojima commanded sharply

"Oh...okay" Nanako muttered quietly as she did what he commanded

"Ryotaro..." Motoko muttered as her brother left the room

...

"It was because they showed a story about a traffic accident..." Nanako explained to her cousin "Mom died in an accident...I don't remember it. And Dad won't talk about it."

...

"Nanako-chan..." Motoko muttered before she walked over to the counter "Your coffee, cream and sugar right?"

"Yeah" She smiled

"Yu? The same right?" Motoko asked her son

"Actually, I'm fine" Yu stated "I'm heading up to my room"

"Y-" Motoko began but her son had already departed up the stairs "Yu..."

...

"Big bro is lonely" Nanako muttered

"Huh?" Motoko questioned

"He's worried you're going to take him away..." Nanako told her

"Did...he tell you this?" Motoko asked

"No..." Nanako said with a shake of her head "But Big Bro and his friends said a lot of things..."

...

Motoko dipped her head down at her words

* * *

"Yu...can I come in?" Motoko asked as she knocked on her sons door

"Sure..." Came his soft voice

Stepping into her Yu's room, she found her son sitting on his couch with his eyes facing his feet

"Do you hate me?" She asked

"No..." He quietly muttered

"Then why...?" Motoko questioned

...

"You think you can show up and just be all _loving mother _on me?" Yu questioned as he faced her "Be honest, if you didn't come back here, would you have even contacted me this entire year?"

...

"Of course I would" She claimed

"Really?" Yu questioned "Then why did I find out through your divorce through Uncle? Why did I not learn you were coming to Inaba until you showed up at the front door?"

"Ryotaro wanted to surprise you..." She informed him

"That's not the point...why didn't you call me and tell me yourself?" Yu angrily questioned "Why don't you ever talk to me?"

"I...I always-" Motoko stuttered

"You and Dad...all you did was work..." Yu muttered "And now that Dad's not here anymore and you got a local job, you think you can just _make up_ for all the lost time?"

"I-"

"You _abandoned _me" Yu stated sharply "Every time...every job you take, you don't even stop to think about me, how alone I feel, and I never get a chance to stay in one place, I never get a chance to make friends. I only made my first real friends a month ago and I'm _16_, mom! You can't just show up here and expect me to pretend none of that happened..."

...

"I told you before...I wasn't the best mother" Motoko echoed

"Saying that doesn't make it okay!" Yu finally snapped "Just because you know what you did was wrong doesn't mean all is forgiven on the spot! I was alone! Nothing will change that! You can't pretend it didn't happen! You can't pretend you care about me when-"

"ENOUGH!"

Yu stood frozen, starled by his mothers roar

"Don't you _dare _say I don't care about you, Yu Narukami!" She growled as she walked right up to him "I know...I know I abandoned you! I know what I did was wrong! I know...I know and I'm sorry! I can't repeat that enough! The entire reason I sent you here was because me and your father took a job that we thought could reconcile our marriage! I know that's absolutely pathetic for a mother to do! I don't blame you for feeling this way...I don't...your dad is a piece of shit but I'm no better!

...

I loved your father...I loved Shinya Narukami and cheated on me! But I...no, both of us ignored our boy...our child, we left him all alone, I could have stayed with him! But O left him to fend for himself! I left my baby...my poor baby all alone...

I...I'm worse than him, I'm worse than your father..."

Yu's eyes widened as his mother sobbed in front of him, tears of his own started to sting his eyes

"I love you" Motoko sobbed as she hugged her son "No matter what you think, I've always loved you and I'll always will love you!"

"Mom..." Yu stated in awe as tears began to pour down his cheeks

"Don't hate me Yu, please don't hate me!" She cried "You're all I have left!"

"Mom...Mom" Yu repeated quietly muttered as he wrapped his arms around his mother

"I won't take you away..." Motoko whispered "I'll never take you away again..."

And with that, mother and son cried together until the early hours of the morning

* * *

"Are you okay?" Motoko questioned as she ran her hand through her sons hair, the two long settled on sitting on the floor

"Yeah" Yu confirmed with a sniff, his eyes still red

"It's going to be okay" Motoko smiled as she placed a kiss on her sons head "We're staying here in Inaba..."

"Thank you Mom..." Yu quietly muttered

"It's okay..." She smiled as she pulled herself up "You should get some sleep..."

"I will" Yu nodded

"If you ever want to talk, I'm right here" Motoko said to her son before turning away

"Mom..." Yu said, catching his mothers attention "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course..." She smiled

"How...how do you know when you like someone?" He asked

"Oh?" She questioned "What's this, do you like a girl at school?"

...

"I don't...I'm not sure" Yu sighed

"Well...how does she make you feel?" Motoko asked

"She...um...crap, this is embarrassing" Yu sighed "She makes me feel...warm, but at the same time, I'm worried that I'm just misplacing feelings, maybe It's just cause she's my first female friend but..."

"She makes you feel warm...can you sleep at night?"

"Huh?" Yu questioned

"When you're lying in bed, does it feel like someone's squeezing your heart?" Motoko questioned "Do you think about just spending time with her and just holding her in your arms? Do the songs on the radio finally make sense?"

"Yeah..." Yu muttered "How did you know?"

"Oh my little boy has a crush!" Motoko giggled as she hugged her son

"M-Mom!" Yu blushed

"Oh my boy" Motoko laughed as she began to leave once again "...I love you"

"I love you too Mom" Yu smiled as Motoko left the room "And...I guess I like Chie..."

...

"_Oh shit_, I like Chie..." Yu yelped as he buried his head in his hands "Kou..."

...

"I can't...I can't tell her" Yu sighed as he shook his head "Kou likes her...

...

But..._I_ like her..."

**MAY 31/ DRAMA ROOM**

"I'll be going now" Yu said as he departed

"Bye Yu-kun" Yumi smiled as the boy exited through the door before letting out a sigh

"Oh, I know that sigh" A female member of the club giggled

"Huh?" Yumi asked

"Are you smitten with Yu-kun?" Another member laughed

"Wha?!" She spluttered as her face turned red "N-No...that's not it!"

"Oh, but he's so handsome!" Another piped in "Plus, I heard he's single!"

"Really, him?"

"Wow!"

"You're all wrong!" Yumi defended "Besides I'm...I have to go!"

And with that, Yumi dashed out the room

Her cheeks still red and her thoughts still on Yu...

_"He...he wouldn't have told me all that if he didn't feel _something _for me..."_

* * *

"And you say this man...attacked you _with swords_...?"

"Yeah!" Three voices agreed in unison

"And he had a...big X-shaped scar on his face...?"

"Yeah!" The trio cried once again

"And he was making puns as he was cutting away at you?"

"Yeah!" Once again

"And this was a week ago?" Adachi questioned "And you waited this long to report this...why?"

"He threatened to cut our dicks off!" One cried

"We haven't felt safe in our own homes for a week!" Another cried

"And this happened...when you were mugging someone?" Adachi asked

"Yes!" Another simultaneous cry

"Yeah...Okay" Adachi sighed

* * *

"What was that about?" Dojima questioned

"Some crazy kids trying to report some made-up crime, accidentally confessed they mugged some kid last week" Adachi said as he took a seat at his desk

"You can't do this to us!" One cried out as the group was dragged into a holding cell

**JUNES**

"I wrote down everything I need, so this shouldn't take that long." Yukiko noted

"What are you making?" Yu questioned

"Promise you won't laugh...?" Yukiko mumbled in embarrassment "Miso soup...I'm studying the basics of the basics. But it's not turning out quite like it does in the book, even though I'm following the directions."

"Shouldn't you look for somone to help you?" Yu questioned

"That would help" Yukiko nodded "But I think there's no point unless I do it alone...our cooks help me out all the time. At first they just give me advice, but eventually they take the knife from me. So even if the meal turns out wonderfully, it doesn't mean anything that way...I told them to leave me alone, but they still stay and watch. Are they that worried about my cooking...?"

"Uhh..." Yu stalled

"Hello and welcome to Junes where everyday is customer appreciation day, may I be of service today?"

"Oh, no thank you" Yukiko said to the attendant

"Hi mom" Yu muttered

"Oh, hello Yu" She noted "Out shopping with your friends?"

"Oh, you're Yu-kun's mother?!" Yukiko gasped before bowing "Hello, I'm Yukiko Amagi! I'm a friend of his!"

"Hello there" Motoko smiled before turning to her son "Is there anything I can help with today?"

"No thanks mom, we're fine" Yu said to her

"Well if you need anything, I'm nearby" Motoko smiled, before nudging her head towards Yukiko and mouthing _"Is this her?"_

_"No"_ Yu muttered with a quick shake of his head

"Hmm?" Yukiko questioned, catching Motoko's gesture but not Yu's

"Goodbye now" Motoko smiled as she departed

"Narukami-kun...your mother is so beautiful" Yukiko muttered

"Oh...umm...thanks?" Yu shrugged

"Y'know, the last time, the head chef took the knife from me, shouting, 'I can't stand to watch anymore!' and made the rest. The waitress saw it and said to the head cook, 'Yukiko wants to make it herself, even if it's awful...' Before I knew it, I was 'studying how to cook for a boy I like'...my parents got involved and it exploded from there... Funny isn't it?" Yukiko giggled "But... maybe it wasn't all a lie.

...

T-Taste my food again, okay...?"

"Sure" Yu smiled

_"I wonder what Mrs. Narukami meant when she said 'Is this her'?" Yukiko wondered at the two continued shopping "Does...Does Yu-kun like me?"_

**JUNE 1/ INABA MUNICIPAL HOSPITAL**

"There you are..." Yu sighed

"Yu-kun?" Yumi questioned as the boy appeared in the hallway "What are you doing here?"

"You weren't in Drama class today, the Vice President was filling in your role" Yu informed her

"I'm sorry" Yumi sighed "Mom collapsed...she works from sunup to sundown, and then she comes here to look after him every day...the doctor said it was exhaustion. She'll be released from the hospital soon, but…she's pushing herself too far. She's so stupid…"

"That's...rough" Yu said

"It is." Yumi groaned "Nothing matters anymore. Now I have to look after Mom, like she looked after him. If I don't quit the drama club and get a job, Mom will just make herself sick again working all the time…! I'm stepping down from my role! The lead role…I had all my lines memorized! My script was full of notes! I'd practiced by myself all this time…but there's no point now. Nothing goes my way…It's all because of my parents. They're both holding me back…"

"Don't give up so easily" Yu encouraged "You got to remember to take care of yourself too..."

"I see...thank you" Yumi smiled "You didn't seem very reliable when we first met, but you know, you're pretty kind after all."

"Thanks" Yu laughed

"I'm sorry for complaining like this. It's not like you have anything to do with what's happening in my life." Yumi sighed

"Friends have to stick together" He smiled

"In for a penny, in for a pound?" She giggled "Ha… It's nice to hear you say that, though."

"Maybe I should introduce you to all my other friends too..." Yu wondered if she would fit in with the investigation team

"That's be nice one day" Yumi smiled with a small hint of red on her cheeks "I have to get back to my mom, but thank you Yu-kun"

"Glad I could help..."

* * *

"I think Yu-kun likes me..."

"Wha?!" Chie practically choked on her soda

"We do spend a lot of time of together" Yukiko noted as he she twiddled her fingers around her soda "And I did meet his mother the other day"

"Wha-He introduced you to his mom?!" Chie coughed

"Well no, we ran into her at Junes, she works there" Yukiko explained "But I caught her mouthing off to him, saying something like _is this her?_ Like he told her about me..."

"Oh...I get it" Chie quietly stated

"He offered to help taste test my cooking" Yukiko continued "Maybe I'm looking too much into this...but-"

"Do _you _like him?" Chie questioned

...

"I...I think so" Yukiko smiled as a small blush illuminated her cheeks "I've never really met a boy like him before"

"Well...if he likes you back..." Chie shrugged

"You're right..." Yukiko smiled at her friend "But I'll tread lightly, just to be sure...do you want another soda?"

"No, I'm fine" Chie confirmed to her friend before she took off to the snack bar and then she quietly sighed to herself "Of course...of course...he likes Yukiko"

_"It was just wishful thinking that he was interested in me..." She sighed "I...I thought all that time we spent together was...and I was kinda...attracted to him..._

_..._

_Idiot, it was more than that and you knew it"_

Chie could only close her eyes and squeeze her almost-empty cup as the only boy she had ever felt attracted to began to slip away

**JUNE 2/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

_"Hey...it's me" _

"Hey Chie" Yu greeted "What's up?"

_"You...wanna train today?"_

"Sure" He nodded but was confused by her tone "You okay?"

_"I'm fine..." She sighed _

"Chie...I..."

_"Do the right thing" Yu told himself "but in that good word for Kou"_

"Kou...He l-"

_"He's busy with training right now" Chie informed him "Yosuke refuses and I think I actually might just break Yukiko..."_

"Sure...I'll come along" Yu smiled

_"I'll...I'll tell her" He instructed himself "Kou's been pining after her for a long time...I have no right to take that away from him"_

* * *

"I've decided, I'm going to tell Chie how I feel!"

"Seriously?" Daisuke questioned "Wow, finally, man..."

"After we win our next game...that is" Kou smiled "I'm going to do it at our finest moment"

"You keep pushing it, man" Daisuke sighed "If you don't-"

"I know, I know" Kou sighed "But hey, I don't see anyone else gunning for her"

"Whatever man" Daisuke sighed as he threw his bag over his shoulder "I'm just saying..."

"I'll tell her! I will!" Kou defended

"Back up your claims man..." Daisuke groaned

"Fine!" Kou snapped as he pulled up his phone "I will!"

And then he proceeded to flick through his contacts until he came across her

He stared at the name intently, breathing heavily through his nose

And then he clicked "**CALL**"

"I love you...I love you...I love you" He practiced

* * *

"Again?" Chie sighed, her and Yu sitting on a bench under the patio, the rain interrupting their training

"What's wrong?" Yu asked

"It's Kou" She sighed "He called me up for an hour last night to talk about spices..."

_"Probably just wanted to hear your voice..."_

"You know...you could just ignore him" Yu noted "I ignore half the texts I get from Yosuke since-"

"Nothing but dirty jokes?" Chie questioned, Yu nodded, she then sighed and clicked a button on her phone "Yeah...yeah"

_**CALL IGNORED**_

* * *

_"This is Chie, I can't come to the phone right now, so just leave a message, 'kay?"_

"Oh...damn it" Kou groaned

* * *

"So..." Chie began as she put away her phone

"So...?" Yu urged on

"Yukiko, huh?" Chie nudged

"What about her?" Yu questioned

"You like her, right?" Chie questioned

"What!?" Yu choked on his soda "What the he-Where did that come from?!"

"Well...do you?" Chie sternly asked

"Why...why do you ask?" Yu stuttered

"So...you do..." Chie muttered as she looked away from him

"Y-Yukiko's a friend" He told her

"_Just _a friend?" Chie asked, a smear of hope in her voice

"Yes!" Yu defended himself

"Oh!...oh" Chie piped up and then calmed down "You're not just...saying that?"

"Why would I lie about that?" Yu asked with a raised eyebrow

"She...She thinks you like her" Chie informed but then cringed "Oh god, I told you that..."

"Am I...have I been leading her on?" Yu questioned "I...I didn't mean to..."

"She mentioned your mom...said something like _Is this her? _in Junes" Chie repeated

"Oh!" Yu shot up as his face turned red "T-T-T-That wasn't about her..."

"Oh...then who was it about?" Chie questioned before her face turned red "Actually you don't have to say"

...

_"Sorry about that, King Moron's a real pain right? I'm Chie Satonaka"_

_"Thanks for the save, I'm Yu Narukami"_

"No...I'll tell you" Yu sighed as he stood up "But...first I need to tell you something...You know...Kou...Kou's"

"Kou's what?" Yu questioned

...

"Kou asked me...to put in a good word for him" Yu explained

"A good word? What do you mean?" Chie questioned as she stood up

"He...He..."

* * *

"Damn it...Damn it!" Kou swore as he flipped his phone open and dialed her number again

* * *

"He...likes you"

"Ichijo...likes me?" Chie questioned

"Yeah...yeah" Yu nodded "Which is what makes this so hard...

_"Hey, are you going home? Why don't you walk home with us?"_

_"Sure, thanks"_

* * *

_"This is Chie, I can't come to the pho-"_

"Damn it!" Kou roared "Fine, I'll just...leave a freaking voice mail"

* * *

"Yu-kun...what's wrong?" Chie asked as the boys eyes began to water

"I...I can't do this to him"

"Yu..." Chie observed the boy, her heart breaking at the sight. She was already sick of seeing him experience so much pain

"Chie...I..."

_"I shouldn't have rushed in like that by myself..."_

_"It's okay, we'll in head together next time"_

* * *

"Hey Chie, It's Kou" The boy sighed as he was leaving the message "I couldn't get a hold of you so...I just wanted to tell you this before I chicken out...I...I like you...I've always...

No...

Chie...I...I...I've always felt this...Chie...even since we first met; I would always sweat and I'd lose my voice, my knees would feel weak and I couldn't sleep...

* * *

"Ever since I met you...my heart would feel like it's being tugged, I couldn't sleep at night, my voice would go hoarse and my knee's would shake"

"Y-Yu-kun" Chie gasped

"At first, I thought my feelings were just mixed up, you were just my first female friend and maybe I didn't know how to feel" Yu explained "But some things were cleaned up for me...and I know, I can't deny it, I haven't even known you for two months but I know!"

"Yu..." Chie quietly muttered, her heart beating a million miles a minute "Can...I tell you something?"

"Huh?" Yu questioned

"Guys would never see me...as me" Chie told him quietly "I'd always just be Yukiko's tomboy friend...I always believe that no one would see me for myself..."

_"Narukami-kun?"_

_"Yu"_

_"Huh?"_

_"Call me Yu" _

_"W-Woah, are you sure? I mean...we've only known each other a few weeks and-"_

_"Sure, I mean I've been calling you Chie this whole time and not Satonaka-san. It's only right, you're my friend"_

"But...you helped me see who I really am..." Chie smiled shyly "You showed me I could be more than that...and you stood by me, and everyday I'd look forward to see that smile...your smile"

"Chie..." Yu whispered

* * *

"Chie...you'd always be on my mind" Kou sighed "What I'm trying to say is..."

* * *

"I knew you'd hang out with the others...but I'd feel happy when you'd choose hang out with me" Chie smiled sweetly "And on that day..."

_"I'm...lonely"_

_"Eh?"_

_"My parents would always be to busy with work, and we moved around a lot. I almost never saw them and I never had any time to make friends. I was alone...every single day...I never had friends and I had no place that felt like home"_

_"Yu-kun..."_

_"But...being here...even though I know it's just been a few weeks and I'm here because of their work, I feel like I belong here...and you Chie..."_

_"Me?"_

_"That day when you saved me from the mouthing from King Moron and asked if I wanted to walk home with you...it finally felt like I starting to make a connection"_

_"I guess...You were my first friend Chie..."_

"I was so happy I affected your life" Chie smiled as her eyes began to water

...

"You..._changed _mine"

"Yu?" Chie questioned

"You...showed me a lot" Yu smiled as he reached over and took Chie's hand, causing the girl to blush profusely "You're the strongest person I know...and the bravest...and the kindest...and even the most beautiful"

"Wha-!?" She gasped

"I wasn't lying all those times I said you were cute" Yu smiled as his thumb ran over her hand "Your adorable short hair, those brown eyes, your green track jacket...your strong legs...I love them all"

...

"I thought it was too soon to come to this conclusion...but the way I fell...there's no other explanation...

...

No...No, damn it, I can't!"

"Yu?" She questioned

"Kou...loves you" Yu sighed "He loves you..."

...

"I don't care..."

"Wha?"

"I don't care" Chie told him sternly "Do you really think I'd tell you all this if I didn't shared your feelings?!"

"You.." Yu softly mumbled

"You were my first guy friend, I've only you for a short amount of time and I can't imagine my life without you, I've never felt anything for a guy before...not Kou, not anyone...before you"

"I've...never felt this way before" Yu admitted "And if I'm wrong...let me just be wrong, Chie Satonaka..."

* * *

"Chie...from the moment I've met you...I known, so now I'll tell you..." Kou softly said through the phone "I've always loved you"

* * *

"I love you..."

...

"Just like that, huh?" Chie giggled as her heart practically shot out of her chest before her eyes met with his "I thought it would be hard to say this, but now that the times right...it's so easy...I love you too"

* * *

_**MESSAGE SENT**_

Kou beamed to himself, his breath shaking as the voicemail was sent. Chie would finally know his feelings. Every emotion possible ran through his body as he shook

"I did it..." He softly muttered to himself before laughing to himself "This...this is...holy shit, I actually did it..I...feel great...like a whole weight was lifted off my shoulders"

...

"Man..." Kou laughed

* * *

_**YOU HAVE 1 NEW MESSAGE**_

...

"So...what do we do now?" Chie laughed, ignoring the notice from her phone

"I don't know" Yu laughed "I guess...I should kiss you..."

"Yeah..." Chie smiled "I've...never kissed anyone before"

"Neither have I..." Yu admitted "And...I have to admit I still feel selfish...for stealing you from K-"

"You didn't steal anything..." Chie told him "I don't love Kou...I love you"

...

"I love you...that's all the matters" Yu muttered as he closed the distance between Chie, wrapped his arms around her while she wrapped hers around him

And then, on the patio overlooking the small town of Yaso-Inaba, in the pouring rain on June 2, 2011

Yu Narukami and Chie Satonaka kissed for the first time

* * *

If it seems too early in the timeline for Yu and Chie to get together, just know it was just around this time I actually maxed out Chie's social link. So yeah...

Just to be clear, the Raidou thing was a joke, it won't play a role in the story

Also, as for Yu's mother Motoko's appearance...think of Carla Yeager from Attack on Titan but with Silver hair and grey eyes

...

And not ripped in half by a Titan

Come on, that's not even a spoiler anymore...


	7. Your Affection

BIG NOTICE: FOR THE MOST PART, THIS FIC IS TOLD IN A STRAIGHT FORWARD STORY FORMAT, I HAVEN'T SPOILED ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS FROM LATER IN THE GAME TO THE CHARACTERS, NOR YOU, THE READER

THAT, HOWEVER, IS A CHANGE HERE...

WITH THIS CHAPTER COMES SOMETHING THAT IS A SPOILER FROM EVENTS THAT OCCUR _VERY LATE IN THE GAME_.

SO JUST A WORD OF WARNING, UNLESS YOU'VE COMPLETED THE GAME OR JUST FLAT OUT DON'T CARE

_**DO NOT READ THIS CHAPTER**_

FOR THOSE STICKING AROUND, PLEASE ENJOY

* * *

**YOUR AFFECTION**

Chie Satonaka had never kissed a boy before

She never knew when, or even if it would happen. People always saw her as _one of the guys_ or Yukiko's tomboy friend or the freaky eater from Aiya

But then a boy came into her life, his smile, his determination, his bright, shining personality, all of it made her feel things that she never felt before, that she never thought she'd _ever_ feel. She had only known him for a little under two months, but when she laid awake in her bed, her heart tugging at just the thought of his smile, she knew it could be only one thing

She was in love.

She found it silly. To fall in love so fast...

That was until he told her how he felt about her, mirroring her symptoms, her feelings. He told her that he loved her

And then, in that moment, all she wanted was this boy to stay by her side. Which he did...

And here she was, with a boy who told her he loved her, and whom she had told she loved too. A smile on her face and a warm feeling in her heart, she embraced him and placed his lips to his

It was warm and sent a jolt through their lips, it sent their bodies into a strange numbness where it felt like their bodies were about to shut down but every sense remained and was going into overdrive. Their hands ran over each others backs and it sents shivers through each party. They held onto each other, neither wanted to break away until all the breath finally escaped their lungs

"Wow..." Chie panted as she gasped for air

"Yeah..." Yu said through breaths

"That was..." Chie said "Wow...I never thought...I'd be the kind of girl who'd be so...happy over this kinda stuff, the kind to fall head over heels for a guy..."

"Y-Yeah..." Yu laughed, still holding her close to him "I...I fell so..."

"Happy?" Chie asked

"Yeah" He smiled as her

"Me too..." She nodded with an affectionate look "I...still I can't believe it, you chose me..."

"What do you mean?" Yu asked

"I'm so ordinary compared to Yukiko..." Chie sighed as she closed her eyes "She's the one who would always get the boys pining after her...I thought you would be no different...but, I can't believe it, _you chose me_!"

"Of course I did" Yu smiled as her "Didn't you hear...? I love you Chie..."

"I love you" Chie smiled as she buried her head into his chest before letting out a short laugh "I haven't even known you two months and I love you..."

...

"What... am I going to say to Kou...?" Yu sighed

"And me to Yukiko..." Chie mumbled as she pulled her head away "I don't want to hurt her..."

"I really don't know what to do about this" Yu told her "I...I...don't want Kou to feel like I stole you"

"Yeah, or for Yukiko to feel like I stole you" Chie sighed before facing him "How about for now...we keep this to ourselves"

"I think that's a good idea" Yu nodded "For now, no one needs to know we're together"

"Not until we're ready" Chie added "I don't think I could take everyone's reaction right now, could you imagine the teasing from Yosuke? Ugh..."

"It shouldn't be too hard" Yu confided "We're not the kind of couple who hold hands all the time and call each other mushy nicknames..."

"Hell no!" Chie yelped "I may be your girlfriend now, but I'm still me!"

"Yeah..." Yu laughed "I...like the sound of that..._your girlfriend_"

"Geez!" Chie squealed "You're making me blush..."

"You really are cute when you blush" Yu smiled as he placed a kiss on his girlfriends cheek

"H-Hey!" Chie blushed

**SATONAKA HOUSEHOLD**

"What's that smile about?" Chie's mother asked

"Oh nothing" Chie said, unable to wipe the smile off her face

"Did Aiya add a new type of beef bowl?" She questioned

"It's nothing!" Chie defended as she fled the table

"What was that about?" Chie's father asked as he entered the room

"Chie's got a boyfriend" Chie's mother muttered

...

"Where do you keep the knifes?" He questioned as he clenched his fists

"Hush, you" Chie's mother pointed

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"What's that smile about?" Motoko questioned

"Oh, it's nothing" Yu said as he scampered up the stairs

...

"Atta boy" She smiled

**KOU ICHIJO'S HOME**

"Come on...come on" Kou groaned as he stared at his phone "Just...reply already"

**JUNE 3/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Such a lonely shopping district, isn't it?

"Hmm?" Yu questioned before noticing the gas station attendant he met on his first day in Inaba "Oh, you"

"It's been like this since they built that mega-store outside town a few years back but lately, it's been noisy here too. I understand that everyone is afraid of the murderer, but…" The attendant said as he adjusted his hat "It seems they're actually excited, having something big and fresh to chat about...Heh, am I overthinking it?

...

Heh, I'm just rambling on, go ahead"

"Thank you" Yu nodded as he took off, his umbrella shielding him from the rain

...

"That him?" Came a voice from behind

"What are you doing here?" The attendant spat

"You know" the guest laughed "I'm waiting for my time to shine, why did you even call me out here if you didn't need me right away?"

"All in good time, Sho..." The attendant muttered

"I'm going back inside" Sho spat as he turned back to the gas station "It's freaking pouring out here..."

"Yes..." The attendant muttered as he looked up to the sky "But when it comes time to purge them, they will pray for something as beautiful as rain in their final moments..."

**JUNE 4/ AIYA**

"I can't do it..." Kou heaved

"I told you" Daisuke scoffed "That freaking thing is impossible"

"I don't understand how Chie can do it..." Kou groaned as he stared down at the rainy day beef bowl

"That's girls a freak of nature" Daisuke muttered

"Hey, watch your mouth!" Kou snapped

"You know what I meant" He sighed "Any word back from her?"

"No" Kou sighed as he put down his chopsticks "It's like she didn't even hear the message I left her..."

"Then call her back" Daisuke suggested

"What if...what if she rejects me?" Kou groaned "What if-"

"Maybe the message never sent" Daisuke noted "_If_ you even sent it in the first place..."

"I told you before!" Kou yelled "I did, okay! I poured my heart out in that damn thing"

"Okay! Okay!" Daisuke grumbled "Be honest, the entire reason you came here today was because you were hoping to run into her, weren't you?"

"S-S-So what?" Kou questioned "What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing, just don't drag me along with you" Daisuke sighed as he stood up "I'm outta here"

"Aw come on man!" Kou pleaded "If I'm here by myself, it'll look weird!"

"Honestly" Daisuke scoffed as he retrieved his umbrella and left

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"I can't believe you're this good of a cook!" Chie moaned as she munched down on Yu's homemade steak "I really hit the jackpot with you!"

"Thanks!" Yu laughed as the two sat alone in his room

"And to think I almost dragged you to Aiya in this weather" Chie sighed happily before blushing "So this...is the first time I've been your room, huh?"

"Yep" Yu nodded "In fact, this is the first time I've ever brought a girl home in"

"R-Really? I'm glad" Chie smiled before looking down at the steak "Hey...d-did you make this just for me?"

"Of course, you're my girlfriend" Yu smiled

"Yeah...I am" Chie grinned "And you're my boyfriend! So I should make you something sometime...what's your favorite food?"

"Fried Rice" He told her

"Seriously?" Chie scoffed "Come on, give me something else"

"Okay" Yu nodded "I..like Curry"

"Now that I can make!" Chie piped "Probably..."

"Probably?" Yu questioned

"Yeah!" Chie smiled before taking a bite of the steak "Hey...do your Mom and Uncle know I'm up here?"

"They're both at work" Yu confirmed to her "Nanako's the only one here and I told her we were studying"

"Good" Chie smiled before leaning over the table and planting a small kiss on Yu "Almost as good as steak..."

"Almost?" Yu laughed and clasped the back of Chie's head and smacked his lips to hers in a near minute long kiss "How about now?"

"Now...you're about the same" She smiled

**EVENING**

_"And now for the weather." The TV Anchor read out "The week ended on a wet note as rain clouds moved into the area. As a result, a thick fog is expected to form in the Inaba region later tonight…"_

"We saved Kanji...all should be good this time" Yu muttered to himself

"Do you want something to eat Yu?" Motoko asked

"No thanks Mom..." Yu denied

**MIDNIGHT/ YU'S ROOM**

"There's nothing..." Yu sighed in relief as he stared at the midnight channel "There's nothing"

_PIPIPIPIPI_

Checking his phone, he found the name that brought a smile to his face

"Hey Chie" He smiled as he answered the phone

_"Looks like we're all good this time" Chie sighed through the phone_

"Yeah, no...nasty surprises this time" Yu nodded "I worried that Yumi or someone would show up"

_"Who?"_

"Oh, you haven't met, never mind" Yu waved it off "I'm just glad Kanji's safe"

_"Yeah, he should be back soon" _

"All right, I'll see ya" Yu nodded

_"Yeah..."_

"I love you"

_"I love you too..." Chie smiled_

_CLICK_

Yu did all he could to repress the grin on his face as he closed his phone

**SATONAKA HOUSE**

_**"YOU HAVE ONE NEW MESSAGE" **__Chie's phone spoke_

"Yeah, whatever" Chie sighed as she turned off her phone, still not having checked the voice mail from Kou "I'll check it in the morning"

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

_**"My, My..." **_A figure muttered as it stood amongst the fog laid among the shopping district _**"I was hoping they would lose morale after the Ebihara girls death, but I guess I underestimated them...very well then, it looks like it will take a little longer for it to begin"**_

...

"Who the fuck are you talking too?" Sho asked as he exited the gas station and called out

**JUNE 5/ JUNES FOOD COURT **

"So Kanji-kun should be back tomorrow" Yukiko stated

"Well that's good" Yosuke sighed "Looks like it was a success afterall..."

"Yeah..." Kou softly muttered

"Something wrong?" Yosuke questioned

"Oh no, it's nothing" Kou sighed with a discreet look to Chie

"We're all just glad he's safe" Daisuke piped in

"I'll get us some more drinks" Chie suggested as she stood up

"Do you need any he-" Kou began

"Narukami-kun, could you help me?"

"Sure" He nodded as Kou groaned

...

"Hey" Chie said as the two were out of hearing distance "Kou...sent me a message a few days ago, I just checked it out this morning"

"Huh?" Yu sounded before Chie played the voice message she recieved from Kou

The message of Kou's confession to Chie...

"Oh..." Yu muttered as the message ended and he ran his hand through his hair "Well that's not easing off the guilt"

"I told you before, don't feel guilty..." Chie sighed as she clicked a few keys on her phone

_**"MESSAGE DELETED"**_

"How can you feel guilty about the message when there was no message in the first place?" Chie said with a small smirk as she placed the phone back in her pocket "May not be the nicest thing but..."

"We have to clear it up someday" Yu told her "I don't want to go around pretending you're not my girlfriend forever..."

"I know...I know" Chie sighed as she took her boyfriends hand and ran her thumb over it "But...Yukiko...I don't want to-"

"You don't want to what, Chie?"

"Wha-Yukiko!" Chie cried out as he practically threw Yu's hand away "What are you-"

"You two were taking so long getting the soda's, I thought I'd come help" Yukiko noted "Where are they?"

...

"Oh, the soda's! Doy!" Chie exclaimed with a mock slap to her head "We completely forgot!"

"Y-Yeah" Yu said with a stifled laugh

"Oh...well, no worries" Yukiko shrugged "We'll go and order them now"

...

"Yu-kun, actually..." Yukiko muttered with a small tint to her cheeks "Could you possibly...help me with my cooking today back at the inn?"

"Oh...Umm..." Yu stalled with a quick look at Chie "I...I uh...I actually can't today, sorry"

"Oh..." Yukiko muttered, disappointment evident in her voice "I see...that's okay then, some other time maybe"

And with that, Yukiko scampered away

"You don't have to turn her down everytime" Chie said with a nudge

"I know, I just...don't want to lead her on" Yu sighed "Maybe if I don't accept her offer every time, she'll...lay off, I guess"

"Maybe" Chie shrugged before she noticed the approaching presence of Kou "Oh hell..."

"You said you never got the message, remember?" Yu noted to her before he walked over to get the soda's

"Hey...Chie" Kou muttered as he rubbed his head "Listen...that message I sent to you a few days ago?"

"Message?" She questioned in her best convincing tone

"Yeah, the voice message I sent to you" Kou sighed "I...I just need to know what you-"

"Oh, voice message?" Chie asked as she held up her phone "This old piece of crap, it can't take voice message, pretty lame huh?"

...

"O-Oh" Kou muttered "So...you didn't get my message?"

"Nope" She denied "W-Why?...was it important?"

"Oh...N-No" Kou said with a shake of his head "It was...just...not important"

"Oh okay then, I'm off to help Yu-kun and Yukiko, bye" Chie waved as she departed

...

"Son of a motherfucker!" Kou cursed under his breath

"That was crappy" Chie sighed as she stood beside Yu

"Can't be helped" Yu sighed too "Until we think of a way to do it without hurting the others, we have to keep this to ourselves, we-"

"Oh, hello Yu" Came a voice to their left "You and your friends do seem to like this place a lot"

"Oh, hi Mom" Yu waved before noticing his company "Oh, mom, this is Chie...Chie Satonaka, I sit next to her in class"

"H-Hello!" Chie bowed "I-It's nice to meet you Mrs. Narukami!"

"Hello there" Motoko smiled

"Yu-kun, Chie, can you help?"

"Coming Yukiko" Chie shouted out as she dashed off

"Bye mom" Yu waved as he took off with Chie

...

"Yup" Motoko giggled "She's the one"

**JUNE 6, SCHOOL ROOFTOP**

"H-Hi there!"

"Where'd the manners come from?" Chie laughed

"Well, um…I didn't know you guys were my senpai." Kanji admitted shyly with a rub of his hair "Uhh...Thanks a bunch. Though I don't really remember what happened…"

"There are some things we'd like you to tell us about." Yu noted

"First off, who was that boy you met with?" Yosuke asked

"I-I really don't know much about him…" Kanji admitted "I mean, I've only met him twice…But Mom talked to some other guy and he said his name was...Nao...Naoto, I think?"

"Okay, but when you walked home from school with him. What did you guys talk about?" Chie questioned

"Uh, well…" Kanji muttered "He just asked stuff like…If anything different happened lately…but I dunno where my head was at, when I came to my senses, I blurted out that I wanted to see him again."

...

"To a guy?" Chie questioned

"I, uh… I don't really get it myself." Kanji sighed "Girls are so loud and obnoxious, so, y'know…I really don't like dealing with 'em. Guys are a lot more laid-back. S-So, uh, I started thinking… What if I'm the type who never gets interested in girls…? And I couldn't accept that, so I kept spinning around and around in my head…"

"Well, I can understand the part about feeling more relaxed around dudes." Yosuke admitted

"I went through the same shit, trust me" Daisuke affirmed him "Girls suck sometimes, man..."

"Y-Yeah..." Kanji nodded

"How are you feeling?" Yu asked

"I'm fine now. I mean, it was all in my head, when y'get down to it. I was the one shutting out that stuff. So, uhh…our family's run a textile shop for generations…oh yeah, you already knew that." Kanji stumbled over his words "My mom's kinda weird…she says stuff like, _Dyes are one with the universe_, and _Cloth is alive_…that's the kinda house I grew up in. So I've been interested in sewing and stuff since I was a kid. But the second I say stuff like that, people look at me funny…girls make fun of me, the people in the neighborhood treat me like I'm some zoo animal, so I was sick of everything. And when I got to my senses, I was running wild.

...

Shit, what's with me today? I'm going on and on about myself…forget all that. Man, I must look really lame right now."

"There's nothing lame about facing your problems" Yu affirmed him

"I...I've never talked about any of this stuff before" Kanji admitted "Guess I never had anyone to tell it to...I guess I wasn't really afraid of girls. I was just scared of people in general.

But all that's behind me."

"Wow, I'm surprised…" Chie said before she smiled "You're a good kid…"

"D-Don't call me a good kid…" Kanji mumbled

"No need to get embarrassed. You're a big guy, you can take it." She laughed

"Hey, is there anything you remember after you ran into us?" Yosuke asked "You know, after you chased us away and said you were gonna take us down..."

"Huh? Uhh… I went home…" Kanji tried to remember "I was gonna sleep it off in my room…I talked to Ma and...wait, I think someone came…"

"To your house!? Who was it!?" Yosuke cried

"Uh, well, it was just a feeling I had…I dunno if anyone actually came…" Kanji shrugged "All I can remember afterwards was some kinda weird dark entrance and then I woke up in that weird sauna..."

"A dark entrance..." Yukiko pondered "Could it have been a TV?"

"Uh…? Now that you mention it, maybe so…" Kanji wondered "Uh, why do you ask?"

"Oh, no reason… I was just wondering." Yukiko said

"Did the police ask you anything?" Yosuke asked

"Well, my mom had called the cops to look for me, so they questioned me for a while. I told them exactly what I just told you and they looked at me like I was crazy. And some guy in a brown suit came around and asked Ma' a bunch of questions" Kanji informed them before getting to the point "So, like… Are you guys playing detective or somethin'?"

"Well...something like that." Kou admitted

"Anything I can do to help?" Kanji asked "If there's some bastard out there who put me through this, I ain't gonna rest until I make 'em pay!"

"Seriously? Awesome! You'd make a great addition to our team!" Yosuke smiled "Whaddaya say, Leader?"

"I see no disadvantages" Yu smiled

"Thank you, Sir! I'll put my life on the line for you guys!" Kanji yelped happily as he oddly made a _shove it _gesture "I'll do my best!"

"Well, if we're gonna welcome aboard a new member…" Yosuke began "Should we take him to our special headquarters?"

"We're still calling it that…?" Chie groaned

"Wh-What's that!?" Kanji asked

"C'mon, let's go!" Yosuke yipped

**JUNES FOOD COURT**

"Huh? Shurr, I waf lifnin'."

"Dude, close your mouth!" Yosuke cried as bits of food flew from Kanji's mouth

"So, uh…someone's killing people with a TV…? What, is he beating them to death?" Kanji questioned

"No, they weren't being beaten _with_ a TV! Were you listening at all…?" Yosuke groaned

"Don't worry, he'll understand once we sees the place with his own eyes." Chie said before turning to Kanji "But the way it happened was just the same as with Yukiko, Kou and Daisuke. The killer kidnapped them first, then threw them into the TV..."

"Yeah… It's scary." Yukiko admitted

_"Man...that show's gotten crazy as of late, huh?" _Came a voice from the next table

_"Yeah. I keep wondering who'll show up next..."_

_"I knew before it came on that he'd be the next one to appear. What's that dude's name? That first-year who used to be in a biker gang..."_

**SLAM**

The group was, needless to say, startled as Kanji stood up and smalled his fists into the table

"Who the hell d'you think was next? That guy's name? Kanji Tatsumi…and he wasn't in a biker gang, he's the one who beat the shit out of those leathered-up pansies! So who are you dipshits…!?" Kanji roared as the two at the next table who quickly fled "Feh… Boring."

"I can't stand it…sure, they have no idea it's related to the murders, but still…how can they talk about their schoolmate like that?" Chie grumbled

"They're like onlookers at a car crash. As long as it's not happening to them, they're dying to see…" Yosuke groaned

"We know that out theory about all the victims being female was proven wrong" Yukiko began to list "But what about all the victims being linked to Ms. Yamano?"

"I don't think that holds up anymore" Yu noted

"Yeah, I talked to my mom, she didn't even know who she was" Daisuke added in

"You guys sayin' you don't have any clues?" Kanji questioned before smiling a throwing a piece of paper on the table "Well listen up, 'cause I got somethin' big."

"What's that?" Chie questioned as she looked at it

"When I made my comeback at school today, there was an annoying brat hanging around. Turns out he was snooping around about Senpai's and my disappearance, so I took this from him." Kanji explained "I dunno what the hell this all is, though."

"Uh, and you took it anyway?" Chie questioned as Yu leaned over to take a look

"Mayumi Yamamo 4/11, Saki Konishi 4/13" Yu read

"What're these dates? April 11th…?" Yosuke asked as he walked over to take a look "Oh, they found the first body on the day school started, so that would have been…the 12th. The 11th is the day before that…I know I can't forget the day Saki-senpai's body was found…that was the 15th. So then, what are these dates? And what does _List of TV programs_ mean? What's _Saki Konishi, April 13th_…?"

...

"The day she was on TV" Yu said after a moment of revelation

"Hey yeah..." Yosuke nodded "I saw that, too. They were interviewing her because she found the first body. Then this part…_Mayumi Yamano, April 11th_. Is that the day she appeared on TV, too…?"

"Oh, she was on! I remember now! That was when the affair hit the news!" Chie piped in

"Hey, wait a sec…Yukiko, didn't you get interviewed too?" Yosuke questioned "When did that interview air!?"

"I-I think it was when I was absent from school… Um…" She began before turning to Yu "It was the day after I met you on the embankment. I had my kimono on…do you remember?"

"I remember" Yu nodded

"I went shopping that day, so…April 15th!" Yukiko yelped "And right after that, I was kidnapped."

"And here..._Kou Ichijo/Daisuke Nagase-_"

"April 23..." Daisuke added

"That's the day we were on the news program" Kou noted

"Yeah!" Yosuke nodded "Kanji! What about the television special you were on!?

"Oh yeah, that thing…damn show made my mom go apeshit on me and-" Kanji groaned

"The date! Just tell us the date!" Yosuke shouted

"Uhhh, I don't remember the exact date…but it wasn't too long before I met you guys." Kanji shrugged

"It's true, then…everyone was on TV before they disappeared." Yosuke muttered

"So, you think the killer's targeting people he sees on TV…?" Chie questioned

"I was so caught up with the news reports about the incidents that I didn't notice at all…" Yukiko mumbled

"Now that I think about it…when the killer failed with Yukiko, they moved to Kanji instead of trying again…" Yosuke noted "Maybe this _being on TV_ thing is some stupid rule that the killer's following."

"That's right…" Yu nodded "The killer could've targeted the same victim again…"

"I think there's a definite connection here between the kidnapping and the TV broadcasts." Yosuke informed them "The victims weren't just involved with the first case. They were also shown on the mass media."

"That must be it…" Chie agreed

"But if so…what's the motive? Why kill someone just because they were on TV?" Yosuke grumbled "Argh…dammit, now that I think about it, we haven't gotten anywhere! Why can't I be smarter…!?"

"Dude, why beat yourself up? I think you guys are awesome." Kanji said with a genuine smile "I mean, you guys noticed what was happening to me and risked your lives to stop it. That's more than enough."

"You rescued me, too." Yukiko smiled

"Don't forget about us" Daisuke smiled with a point to Kou

"We may not have solved the mystery, but we've saved _four_ people already." Chie affirmed

"That's true, but…" Yosuke sighed

"What's more, everyone's deduction that Kanji-kun might be next was right on the nose." Yukiko added in

"I know! We were so close." Yosuke groaned

"Huh? You guys knew?" Kanji questioned "Well damn, I wish you woulda came to me sooner!"

"Well, if we know this much, I think we can outsmart the killer next time. Then it's a countdown to their arrest." Chie said

"Don't forget, it's always possible that Kanji-kun was the last target." Yukiko stated

"Or so we hope…" Yosuke added in "We've thwarted them twice already. Here's hoping the killer's learned their lesson by now. Anyways, let's keep checking the Midnight Channel like usual when it rains."

"That reminds me…the school campout's next week. I hope it doesn't rain." Chie noted "It's for both the first-year and second-year students, so we'll see you there, Kanji-kun."

"Seriously? School, huh…? What a drag…" Kanji shrugged "Yo, mind if I order another grilled steak?...I'm gonna finish this one up while the next one's on the grill. We're…going Dutch on the meal, right?"

"Well, let's get going. I think our new teammate needs to meet Mr. Bear." Chie said as the group stood up

"Huh? What's up?" Kanji questioned "Fine, whatever…I'll go for something cheap, like ramen. Wait, or should I get a takoyaki set…? Man, I can't decide."

"None of it." Was Yukiko's suggestion

"Whaaat!?" Was Kanji's reply

**THE TV WORLD**

"Oh yeah, I remember this thing" Kanji stated as he observed Teddie "Didn't think it was a bear though..._Why _is it a bear?"

"Dunno" Yosuke shrugged

"Me neither" Teddie piped in

"I-It's kinda cute…" Kanji blushed "M-Mind if I pet you?"

"No touching allowed, Mister!" Teddie demanded

"Wha-!? Don't give me any lip, bear!" Kanji snapped "Tch…Uhh…by the way, I've been wondering. You were kidnapped too, right, Senpai?"

"Huh…? Yeah" Yukiko admitted as Kou and Daisuke nodded

"So like, that means you came out to everyone too?"

"Th-That's…Um…" Yukiko stuttered

"That's...uhh...wow" Daisuke groaned with a rub of his head

"Yeah..." Kou sighed

"What was it like for Senpai-" Kanji began

_**SMACK**_

"URGH!"

"Oh sorry!" Yukiko apologized "I didn't mean to hit you so hard!"

"M-My jaw..." Kanji groaned

"I'll be more gentle next time…" Yukiko said

"More… gentle…?" Kanji blushed

_**SMACK**_

"Ow!" Kanji yelped "Damn it woman!"

"What a pair of dimwits…" Chie sighed

"Oh yeah! Here's a present from me, Kanji! It's to celebrate you joining the team!" Teddie piped as he handed Kanji a pair of glasses

"Ah, so these are the glasses you guys told me about." Kanji observed as he took them

"Hurry and put them on." Yukiko suggested

"Huh? S-Sure…but hang on, aren't these different from everyone else's?" Kanji questioned before he slipped them on. A set of gag glasses with a swirl pattern on the lenses, a large fake nose and a dandy mustache now sat on his face "..."

"I-It looks perfect on you… Heehee…Snrk… Ahahahaha!" Yukiko laughed

"Haha, damn, dude. It looks great on you!" Yosuke chuckled

"I had a normal pair ready for you. But Yuki-chan insisted on this one. She wouldn't budge!" Teddie informed him

"Yeah, real funny, you smartass! Wh-Why are you taking it out on me!?" Kanji snapped as he threw away the glasses and took the pair in Teddie's other hand "Gimme that!"

...

"What the hell, these are the same freaking ones!" Kanji snapped as he ripped them off again

"You took my spare pair… Kanji, you must really like those!" Teddie said in awe

"Ahaha! Oh, my sides!" Chie laughed

"This is the real one. It wasn't easy getting it to you." Teddie said as she handed Kanji a set of what appeared to be sunglasses

"Why the hell did you bother making a spare if it's more useless crap…!?" Kanji snapped "Dammit! I'll get you guys for this someday!"

**JUNE 7/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"It was there before...those damn kids... Don't they teach 'em how to file data anymore?" Dojima growled before noticing the presence of Yu "Oh... Sorry, I wasn't talking about you."

"Are you...looking for something?" Yu asked

"No...well...yeah" Dojima sighed "I was trying to find an old newspaper article...It was falling apart, so I made a copy, but the copy seems to have gone missing. There's a certain case where we don't have a suspect yet...and since the trail's going cold, it's about to be buried under newer cases. But I can't give up on this one...ever."

"Daddy...?" Nanako groaned

"What's wrong?" Dojima asked

"My stomach hurts..."

"Was it something you ate!?" Dojima cried out as he ran over to her

"It feels like a sharp pain below my stomach." The little girl squealed

"What!? I'll call the doc-N-No, wait. This happened before. Is it the same feeling!?" Dojima asked

"I don't know..." Nanako groaned

"Urgh... Okay, the medicine we used before is-"

_RIIIIIING_

"Dammit! Who's calling at this time of night...?" Dojima growled as he ran over and answered it "Dojima here! What's this about?

...

A sealed letter? For me? Is it from Ichihara-san!? When did it come!?...You forgot!? I'm on my way!"

"Uncle?" Yu questioned

"Damn it, Motoko's still at work" Dojima growled before turning to his Nephew "Yu, the medicine is in the first aid kit, I'll have to leave her with you"

**A FEW HOURS LATER**

"Yu...you're still up?" Yu questioned as stepped back into the home "You should go to bed"

"Are...you okay, Uncle?" Yu asked

"Just shut up..." Dojima growled, surprising his nephew before shifting his look an apologetic one "I'm sorry...I didn't mean that...How's Nanako?"

"She's okay, I gave her the medicine and Mom came home and took her to bed" Yu informed him

"Good...good" Dojima sighed "It's late, go to bed..."

"Okay" Yu nodded, a sensating sitting within his body, he felt like his Uncle was carrying a heavy burden

"Night...Yu" Dojima said

**JUNE 8/ YASOGAMI HIGH SCHOOL**

"Hey Narukami! Did you know this week is health week?" Morooka spat "And you're not part of the Student Health Association! In other words, you're a lazy bum! I hate lazy, good-for-nothing kids like you! So I'm signing you up to take the place of a sick member!"

"That's not fair!" Chie shouted

"Quiet, you!" Morooka snapped "I don't know what school's like for you big city kids, but here, it's every student's duty to pitch in! Don't tell me you're not enough of a man to do something this easy."

...

"I'll do it" Yu said sternly as he stood up "There's no point in fighting it, you've already signed me up..."

"I see, I see. Then go straight to the infirmary, right now." Morooka commanded "They should be expecting you, since I already told them you'd do it. Thank me!"

"Good luck…" Chie sighed

**INFIRMARY**

"Oh, you're Yu-kun, right?" A female student asked "What's wrong, did you hurt yourself?"

"Actually, I was told to fill in for a sick member "Yu explained

"Oh? Thank goodness. We were running low on people." She sighed "But we actually just finished up for the day. We just checked around the school to see if anyone needs help, and were about to go over today's results. Group O-Oh, that's right. You went alone."

"Yeah, since Konishi isn't here." A male student sighed

"Konishi?" Yu quietly muttered

"Oh yeah, Konishi-kun…he can't help it, after what happened…" The girl sighed "Yeah, poor thing. So you just have to do his part, too."

"Oh, come on guys!" He groaned

"Sorry I'm late" Came a voice that entered through the door

"N-No, it's okay!" The female student stuttered "You don't have to come, really. Helping out at your parents' store is hard work, right? We have a replacement, so don't worry."

…

"I don't want to be the only one doing nothing" He said

"Well…You can help Yu-kun clean up this room, then. We'll go report to the teacher, so why don't you clean a little and go home, okay?" The girl suggested before the group left "W-Well, goodbye!"

...

"I'm Naoki Konishi… A first year." The boy who was left alone with Yu stated "You knew Saki Konishi? I'm her brother."

"Oh?...I'm...sorry for your lo-" Yu began

"You're friends with…Hanamura, right?" Naoki asked "Just so you know, I hate him…and you, too"

Yu could only stare at him in silence...

"Can I go home now…?" Naoki asked

...

"Sure..." Yu muttered

"Goodbye..." Naoki stated as he left the room

Yu stared intently at the spot where Naoki stood, before going about cleaning the room

* * *

"Her brother, huh?" Yosuke asked as he, Yu and Kanji sat atop the school roof

"Yeah, he was pretty cold..." Yu informed him "Said he hated you...and me"

"That little shit" Kanji spat "The hell's his problem?!"

"He lost his sister" Yosuke sighed "And even when she was alive, she was working for Junes, the enemy putting his family out of business...no wonder he hates me, but hating you for being my bud? That's too far..."

"Maybe I'll try talking to him sometime..." Yu noted

"I could lay a pouding to him" Kanji suggested

"What good will that do?" Yosuke scoffed "Come on, lunch is almost over, let's head back to class"

**JUNE 9/ EARLY MORNING**

"Hey, I stopped by the house that politician, Namatame lived in" Kanji stated as the group sans Kou and Daisuke walked to school "There's a bunch of graffiti all over it, shit like _Murderer_, _Coward_, and _You Cu-_"

"We get it" Yosuke cut him off "Looks like a bunch of people still think Namatame murdered Ms. Yamano..."

"Then they're idiots" Chie scoffed "Namatame died long before Kanji-kun was thrown in the TV"

"But they don't know that" Yu noted "But even so, he died before Ebihara did"

"People like to jump to conclusions, they don't care if the dates don't match up" Kanji grumbled "Y'know I checked the news website last night? Some shitbirds actually believe Namatame faked his death...what a bunch of bullshit..."

**AFTERNOON**

"Blast it, I must have misplaced that list" Naoto grumbled

"Naoto?" Came an elderly voice from her doorway

"Grandfather?" Naoto questioned "What is it?"

"A man is here, he claims to be a work colleague" Her elderly grandfather stated

_"Surely not..." Naoto muttered to himself_

"Hello, Detective Shirogane" The guest smiled as he popped into view

"Detective Suou" Naoto shot up "What are you-"

"I merely wished to talk" Katsuya stated as he stepped into the room, picking up a Manga to his left "Rose of Versailles, a classic. I always preferred Hajime no Ippo myself"

"This is _my home_, detective" Naoto stated as she walked over and snatched the manga "What are you doing here?"

"I'm to give you this" Katsuya claimed as he handed him a sheet of paper

"This is..." Naoto mumbled as she accepted the paper

"It's not the same list" Katsuya claimed "But it has all the exact same info as your original, all the dates of the kidnap victims appearances on TV"

"How did-" Naoto choked out

"I merely gandered at your original, you mentioned you lost it, so...I made you a copy" Katsuya smiled "I have a very good memory"

"Detective, this is most unusual" Naoto glared "If I-"

"I'm afraid this is as long as I can stay" Katsuya said a nod "Farewell, Naoto"

As he departed, it took Naoto all she could to not scrunch the paper in her hand

"Excuse me?" A voice called out to Katsuya just as he left "Detective Suou?"

"Yes?" Katsuya asked as he twisted around, facing Naoto's grandfather

"It seems you have taken an interest in my Naoto" He stated "Just how much do you know?"

"Excuse me?" Katsuya asked

"Naoto would not like me to interfere" He stated "But I must warn you Detective...tread lightly when it comes to my family..."

...

"I see..." Katsuya nodded "I have offended you, I apologize"

"You have not offended me, dear boy." The old man smiled "I'm merely looking out for Naoto..."

"I understand sir, farewell" Katsuya smiled with a wave as he departed

And the instant he left the estate, he whipped out his phone

"Thank you for supplying the list, Ms Kirijo" He stated

_"It was no bother, we made sure to make several copies when you sent us the photo of the list" Mitsuru Kirijo's voice ran through the call "This Naoto person is certainly is on the right track"_

"Indeed, he may even be a greater detective than I" Katsuya noted "But like us, all he can do is wait for the next kidnapping..."

_"I see..." _

"It's not necessary for you or the others to get involved yet..." Katsuya stated "I still have a hold on things here."

_"We appreciate your good work"_

"All the credit should go to Junpei, he was the one who first informed us of The Midnight Channel" Katsuya noted

_"Indeed...that will be all for now Katsuya"_

"Very well, goodbye Ms. Kirijo" Katsuya nodded as he hung up the phone

However, unbeknownst to him, a security camera from the Shirogane estate stared directly at him, a camera equipped with a directional microphone

And in the camera room, sat the detective he had talked to not just two minutes earlier

"Kirijo..." Naoto muttered

* * *

"I heard some...less than kind things about you" Yu stated as the pair walked along the riverbank

"Oh, you here to tell me off or somethin'?" Kanji asked

"I'm just here to talk." Yu affirmed

"How come you're soundin' like a cop?" Kanji questioned "So, what is it?"

"Some students said you went around with a gang and bullied a bunch of people" Yu informed him "Is this true?"

"Eh? Bullies? M-Me!?" Kanji spat "Senpai, you're suspecting me!?"

"No...I want to believe you didn't have anything to do with this" Yu stated

"Senpai… I didn't do it." Kanji calmly told him "I mean…maybe it ain't that easy to trust me, since they say that I was in a gang…but you gotta believe me...who am I kidding? 's my own fault rumors like that go around, huh…? At this rate, I'll be causing trouble for you guys…"

"Don't worry about it." Yu smiled

"Senpai…" Kanji muttered, a small red hue on his cheeks "Uhh…Whenever you got time, could you maybe hear what I have to say? I feel all cramped inside and I'm too dumb to know what it's about…"

"Sure" Yu nodded "That's what friends do..."

"I'll make sure I don't cause you any trouble…" Kanji smiled "Well...I guess I should smack that gang of bullies around"

"Uhh..." Yu bit his lip...

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"So I hear that you and your friends like to spend a lot of time at Junes..." Dojima stated with a probing stare

"Y-Yeah..." Yu nodded

"Nothing wrong with that, of course." Dojima nodded "The question is…why do you make so many trips to and from the electronics department?"

"Daaad..." Nanako groaned

"Oh, er, this isn't what you think. I'm not interrogating him…" Dojima defended

"It's not fair. You're always talking with big bro." Nanako whined

"What…?" Dojima questioned

"I mean… Today, you're home, but…" Nanako began

"I always talk with you." Dojima stated

"When is always?" Nanako asked with a yawn "I…I wanna…talk…"

"It's bedtime for you" Dojima sighed "Go to sleep. I'll play with you…next time."

"You promised" She moaned before Motoko led her to her room

"_When is always_, huh…?" Dojima sighed

"Not...good with kids?" Yu asked

"No… It's not that. I mean, I am bad with kids, but that's not the problem…" Dojima groaned with a bitter expression" Truth is, I mostly left raising her up to my wife…her mother…so I don't really know how to approach her…I'm not fit to be her family"

"Fit or not, you _are _her family" Yu affirmed

"Maybe you're right." Dojima smiled wryly "But...you think just being related by blood makes you _family_? That's not the case..."

...

"Oh… sorry. You didn't need to hear about that." Dojima groaned "Get some sleep..."

**JUNE 10/ YASOGAMI HIGH/ LUNCHTIME**

"Mmm! Nothing hits the spot like Instant Noodles!" Chie piped happily as she, Yu, Yosuke and Yukiko sat around their desks, having lunch

"You know, the rainy season's just about here." Yukiko noted

"Isn't it a little early?" Yosuke asked

"Once it starts, it'll be raining every night. We'll have to keep a constant eye on the Midnight Channel." Yukiko added

"Crap, I didn't even think of that…" Yosuke sighed "Well, so it goes...Hehe, I thought you were worried about the rain 'cause of the school campout."

"Why are you so excited about that?" Chie asked

"That's right, it's the first time for you two…" Yukiko noted

"You realize the only purpose of the school campout is to _develop a love for one's hometown in young people_, right?"

"Yeah, they tell us that up front. So?" Yosuke shrugged

"Well you see, the way we supposedly develop that love is by picking up trash of the mountain." Chie grumbled

"P-Picking up trash?" Yosuke stuttered "_Develop a love_ my ass! That's slave labor!"

"Well, the night's kinda fun." Chie shrugged "We cook our own meals with mess kits and sleep in tents."

"The four of us are in the same group." Yukiko noted

"The same group, huh?" Yosuke muttered "Wait, does that mean we sleep in the same tent!?"

"You wish! Guys and girls sleep in different tents!" Chie snapped though a small blush appeared on her cheeks at the thought of sleeping next to Yu "I'm warning ya…If you leave your tent at night, you'll be expelled on the spot."

"Ugh… This gets worse and worse. I thought it was gonna be fun…" Yosuke grumbled

"It's only for one night and we disband before noon the next day. It doesn't last very long." Yukiko added

"Oh…we did have some fun at the river before going home last year." Chie noted

"Do they let you go swimming?" Yosuke asked

"I think so?" Chie pondered "There's always someone who takes a dip, although we didn't."

"I see…so you can swim in the river…" Yosuke grinned

"What are you up to?" Yu asked, only getting a sinister chuckle in response

**EVENING/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Dad's late again..." Nanako muttered as he paced back and forth

_RIIIIING_

"Oh!" Nanako yelped as she ran over and picked up the phone "Dad!...Huh…Really!? Okay… Okay, I understand."

Yu raised an eyebrow at her happy smile

"Dad's coming home now. I need to get dinner ready" Nanako said in high spirits as she ran over to the fridge before she let out a depressed sigh "We're out of pickled radish…Dad'll be disappointed"

...

"I'll take you to Junes" Yu stated

"Really?!" Nanako squealed

"Should be okay if I take you" Yu nodded as he went to put on his shoes

"Thanks Big Bro!" Nanako smiled

**LATER**

Stepping back into the home, along with Motoko who had just finished her shift, Yu and Nanako noticed Dojima was already home

"Dad! Welcome home!" Nanako smiled

"Where did you go at this time of night?" Dojima sternly questioned

"Oh, uhh…Junes" Nanako informed

"Didn't I tell you not to go outside this late?" Dojima grumbled

"B-But, you were coming home… so I…" Nanako stuttered

"Ryotaro, it's okay!" Motoko interrupted

"No matter what your reason was, rules are rules. You promised me, remember?" Dojima told Nanako

…

"It's not her fault" Yu stood in "I'm the one she suggested we to go to Junes"

"Big bro…" Nanako said happily before turning to her father "It's not my fault? Then why is Dad angry...? Why won't he listen…? Dad's stupid…! Stupid, stupid!"

"Nanako! How dare you call your father stupid!" Dojima roared as the little girl fled to her room

"Ryotaro, that's enough!" Motoko snapped "The entire reason they came to Junes was to get Pickled Radish for you!"

"Pickled radish… for me…?" Dojima questioned, earning a nod from Yu "Is that so…but I still can't allow kids to be walking around this late at night. You know how dangerous it's been lately. You shouldn't be wandering around out there at night either!"

"Do _not _yell at my son, Ryotaro!" Motoko snapped "He was putting your interests ahead of his own! Don't punish him for being considerate!"

"That's enough!" Dojima snapped "While he's living under my roof, he'll be living by my rules!"

"Ryo-"

"It's okay Mom..." Yu interrupted "I'll just head up to my room"

...

"Well, you must be proud of yourself" Motoko grumbled at her brother as Yu scampered up the stairs

"Shut up" He growled

"Don't you dare talk to your big sister that way!" Motoko shot "Yu and Nanako were just trying to make you happy! Don't punish them for that!"

...

"He..." Dojima began but then let out a sigh "I...I'll tell him I'm sorry in the morning, just...let me go to bed..."

"Ryotaro..." Motoko muttered as her brother pushed past her

**JUNE 11/ HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"I hated this place when I first came to Inaba. You can tell how small the town is from up here." Yosuke muttered as he overlooked the view "But looking at it now...It's a nice town."

"You okay?" Yu questioned "Cheer up..."

"If only it was that easy..." Yosuke said with a self-mocking smile "I want to tell Saki-senpai something. That what's important... isn't where you are. This town I hated so much? Now, I love it. There's still nothing here, but I have family and friends... and you. The important things are never far off... They're all around you."

...

"I'm glad...we're friends" Yu smiled

"I always wanted to be _special_..." Yosuke admitted "I thought my life'd finally have meaning if I was _special_ to someone. That's why I was really excited when I got my Persona. But I really didn't need it...It's not what you have or what you can do...Just being born, living your life...before you know it, you're already special to someone..."

"Yeah...I know what you mean" Yu nodded _"Just like how Chie's special to me...like all of you are"_

"And you..." Yosuke smiled "You're special to me...and Chie...and Yukiko, and Kou and Daisuke and even Teddie and Kanji too...you're special to all of us"

...

"Crap, that didn't sound like I was confessing my love to you, did it?" Yosuke groaned

"A little" Yu laughed _"I've already had one confession up here"_

"Ahh..." Yosuke groaned but then lifted his head up "Alright, let's see if we can find everyone's house from here! There's Junes, and that's the main street, so...my house is there, the one with that funky roof. Meaning yours is..."

**JUNE 12/ TATSUHIME SHRINE**

"I come here every so often. It's nice and quiet..." Yukiko smiled "I visit here with the waitresses, too. Like before a big guest arrives. We make our annual hatsumode visits here. The exam charm was here, too...once I leave this town... I won't be able to come here again, will I...?"

"You won't come back?" Yu questioned

"I...I don't think I could face my parents again" Yukiko muttered sadly

"Oh, Yuki-chan!" Came a voice from behind them

"Kasai-san..." Yukiko noted "What are you doing here?"

"Taking a little break after ordering from the liquor store." The Kimono clad woman sighed "So now you know..."

"O-Oh, I won't tell..." Yukiko said

"I'm just kidding." She giggled before she noticed Yu "Oh! Is that the rumored boyfriend? I see...that hard work in the kitchen paid off, huh?"

"I-It's not like that!" Yukiko defended as Yu gulped

"It's really not..." Yu piped in

"Wow, your face is burning red." Kasai laughed before departing "Well, I'll let you two be alone!"

"Sh-Sheesh... I-I'm sorry about that." Yukiko blushed "Oh, that was one of our waitresses...they all have the wrong idea... I'm really sorry..."

"It's okay" Yu nodded with a blank face

"O-Oh...thank goodness" Yukiko smiled, a bit disappointed at getting no reaction from him "Kasai-san is teaching me how to cook, along with the other waitresses and chefs. I said I'd learn on my own, but I kept messing up...I burnt myself a couple of times..._please let us teach you_, they said. It's usually the other way around, you know? They use up their break time for my lessons...they're so nice to me...when I was halfway successful one time, everyone gathered around and taste-tested it, saying how good it was...I didn't know what to say...I was just happy...plus I have my friends at school... All things considered, I'm pretty lucky...I want to do my best...for everyone's sake.

...

But I'm also planning on leaving Inaba...betraying those who've been kind to me..."

"I'm sure they'll understand" Yu affirmed

"I...I hope so" She sighed

"I won't think any less of you...you're my friend" Yu told her

"T...Thank you" Yukiko smiled. a tad disappointed with his words _"Just...a friend?"_

**JUNE 13/ SCHOOL LIBRARY**

"It sucks we have to keep this secret..." Chie sighed as she put down her pencil "I mean...in what universe is studying an acceptable pass-time with your boyfriend?"

"Can't be helped" Yu sighed "If we really want to spare our friends feelings, we have to keep this to ourselves...

...

I'll take you on a date, a real one, someday soon"

"Well...we've _kinda _already been on one" Chie smiled

"Oh, so that _was _a date?" Yu laughed

"Yeah..." Chie smiled "That was before we had anything to hide"

"I wish I could tell everyone on the planet about you" Yu smiled as stroked Chie's cheek with his thumb

"Geez!" Chie blushed

"You know, I think this is the first time I've seen you without your jacket" Yu noted, admiring Chie's change to the summer uniform "Your physique...is..."

"Y-You perv!" Chie cried as she covered her chest

"N-N-N-No!" Yu stuttered, his hands waving "I-I-I-I didn't mean...t-that, I...I...I-"

"I may be your girlfriend but you can't just talk about my body like that!" Chie hissed "How would you feel if I admired your...you know!"

...

The two stared at each other blankly before breaking out into a loud snigger

"I was talking about your arms" Yu chuckled

"O-Oh" Chie said with a giggle

"Shhh!" The librarian hissed

**JUNE 14/ INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL**

"There you are..." Yu sighed as Yumi exited a room

"Yu-kun…" Yumi muttered "I just came from Dad's...that man's room…"

"How's your mom?" He asked

"It was nothing. She's already out of the hospital…" Yumi said with a relieved smile "I came here to pick up some medicine for Mom. I just decided to stop by...he looked at me, and he smiled like he was so happy…_Do you want to watch TV? If you want to read some manga, go ahead and buy some. Here's some money for ice cream._ He's so stupid…getting all excited…coughing…causing trouble for the doctors…he's so stupid…that man is not my father. I keep telling myself that over and over, and yet…I can't take it anymore…why me…why me, why me!?"

"Excuse me, can you keep your voice down, please?" A Nurse called out

"Oh… I'm sorry…" Yumi apologized "I'm sorry…I just lost control for a moment. Listen to me rambling on about my dad when you've got dad problems of your own"

"It's alright, sometime it's best to vent..." Yu affirmed her

"I see…" She smiled with a small blush "Oh… I have to go. I need to get this medicine to my mom...um…I'm glad you came."

"I'm just happy you're okay" Yu smiled before he took his leave

"He came all this way...just to make sure I was okay..." Yumi blushed "I...I...When my luck changes...I'll...I'll ask him how he feels about me"

**JUNE 15/ YASOINABA HIGH GYM**

"Is she ignoring me?" Kou sighed as he wiped the sweat off his brow

"How should I know?" Daisuke shrugged "You haven't talked to her in like, what, a week?"

"I don't know what to say..." Kou grumbled "I poured my heart out in that message and it turns out she didn't even get it"

"What kind of Cell Phone doesn't take voice messages?" Daisuke questioned

"This sucks...Narukami's not even helping" Kou groaned "If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was deliberately ignoring my ask for help..."

"Have you considered that maybe Narukami wants you to do this for yourself?" Daisuke scoffed

"He promised to help" Kou whined

"Well, we're all busy" Daisuke groaned "We _are _investigating a murder here..."

"This sucks" Kou grumbled "I really thought I'd finally get a chance to be with her and she still barely knows I exist

...

I'm gonna call Narukami"

"For gods sake" Daisuke sighed

"I have to ask him why he's not helping!" Kou shouted as he flipped through his contacts until he came across Yu's name and clicked call

* * *

"It's Kou" Yu sighed as he looked at his phone

"Seriously?" Chie groaned

"What's up?" Yosuke asked "Not wanting to talk?"

...

"He's been talking a lot of spam lately" Yu groaned

"Yeah, to me too" Chie noted

"That's weird" Yosuke noted as he pulled out his phone "He doesn't call me up about stuff like that"

"Oh..." Yu muttered before letting out a sigh "Well...can't avoid this forever..."

"Y-Yu!" Chie yelped as Yu answered the phone

_"Narukami, dude, what's going on?" Kou cried "What happened to that whole putting in a good word thing?"_

"Kou..." Yu sighed "Listen to me..."

_"Y-Yeah?"_

"Do it yourself"

_"Wha-"_

_**CLICK**_

* * *

"He hung up on me!" Kou cried

"What did he say?" Daisuke asked

"He said...do it yourself"

"See? I told ya" Daisuke sneered

* * *

"Dude...what was that about?" Yosuke questioned

"Nothing" Yu said as he put the phone back in his pocket "It was nothing"

**JUNE 16/ JUNES**

"What do you put in curry again?" Chie asked as she and Yukiko examined ingredients for the food they would make on the camping trip

"Carrots, potatoes, onions… mushrooms, green peppers, and…radishes?" Yukiko listed

"Are radishes…the same as turnips?" Chie asked her "I mean...curry's fine, right? It's practically our national food."

_"Plus, this is me fulfilling my promise to Yu-kun to make him curry" Chie noted_

"We're going back and forth between ramen and curry, but I thought ramen might not be enough..." Yukiko confided

"I wonder what kind of ingredients Yosuke likes…I get the feeling he's real picky." Chie pondered

"He's on another floor, isn't he? Do you want me to go ask?" Yukiko asked

"Nah, no need. Plus, he said he needed to get ready for something." Chie shrugged

"Hey, Chie. You use potato starch for curry, right?" Yukiko asked

"I...think so? Yeah, you do" Chie said before scratching her cheek "Maybe I should use Rice too, Fried Rice is Yu-kun's favorite"

"It is?" Yukiko questioned

"Y-Yeah...his...Mom told me" Chie lied

"Oh" Yukiko sounded "So we need potato starch, rice and…some flour, too?"

"T-There are different kinds of flour…" Chie noted "Which should we get? All-purpose? Whole wheat?"

"Whole wheat sounds healthy" Yukiko nodded "Let's get that one. And…here they are! Chili peppers! It's not curry if it isn't spicy."

"Oh well…Let's just get everything that seems right." Chie nodded "How about some kimchi, too? And some ground pepper!"

"There's two kinds, though. Black and white." Yukiko noted

"Whoa! Way to go, Yukiko…The Amagi family sure knows their stuff! Let's get both, just in case." Chie smiled

"Oh yeah…We'll need some special ingredients, too, to spice things up." Yukiko suggested "Hmm, I remember seeing something on TV about that…I think it was…chocolate…coffee…yogurt…"

"How about mint chocolate!? I love that stuff!" Chie added in "I don't like coffee that much, though…Oh, I can drink mocha, so let's get that."

"What about some seafood?" Yukiko asked That should make the sauce taste better.

"Hey, I'm back" Yosuke said "What's up?"

"We're all going to die" Yu told him

"H-Huh?!"

**JUNE 17/ SCHOOL CAMPOUT**

"Ugh, picking up all that trash was murder on my back…" Yosuke groaned as he and Yu sat at their table "I can't believe someone threw away an entire bike. Dammit, litterers should have to deal with their own garbage…"

Yosuke continued to groan as he smacked his fist into back

"Anyways, time for dinner! Man, I'm starvin'." Yosuke piped happily, his mood changing immediately "Dude, the girls cooked just for us! Not that I expect much outta Chie, but Yukiko's got the full tradition of the Amagi Inn behind her food! You know it's gonna be out of this world!"

"Oh god..." Yu mumbled "You don't know..."

...

"Y'know...I suddenly don't feel so well..." Yu groaned

"H-Hey, what's the matter? Is it okay if I have yours?" Yosuke asked before jumping up and down like a excited child "I can't wait to dig in!"

"Should we…taste this?" Chie questioned as she and Yukiko brought the plate of...Mystery Food X to the table

"Huh? O-Only if you do it first…" Yukiko gulped

"Oh man, here it comes!" Yosuke piped happily

"Uhhh, sorry for the wait. Um…" Yukiko muttered as they placed at the food on the table

"We…put a lot of love into it…" Chie said with a nervous laugh

"Whoa, really? That's kinda clichéd, but still awesome!" Yosuke piped happily as he grabbed a fork "Okay then, chow time!"

...

"Ugghh..aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH**HHHHHHHHHHHH!**"

"Yosuke!" Yukiko cried out as the boy keeled over

"OH GOD, HE'S DEAD!" Chie scramed

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?" Yosuke roared, popping back to life "I mean, what kinda of shi-...curry's supposed to be like _really spicy _or_ kinda mild_, this just stinks! And it's gritty too! It's somehow both gritty and slimy…and it's got squishy parts in it…It's so frickin' nasty I can't swallow it!"

"Well, it just didn't mix too well…" Chie tried to explain "But it does offer a wide variety of textures…"

"It's nauseating!" Yosuke snapped

"C'mon, it's not THAT bad…!" Chie moaned before turning to Yu "Why don't you try it?"

"That's right, the curry has fried rice in it!" Yukiko smiled "Chie said it was your favorite!"

"O...Oh..." Yu muttered before looking at the pile of..._curry _

"Yu, I'm telling you as a friend; don't freaking do it!" Yosuke pleaded. I wouldn't even joke about trying that slop!"

...

"He's...actually going to try it" Yukiko noted as Yu dug a fork in

_"Please tell me I'm not about to kill my boyfriend" Chie pleaded_

"YOU FOOL!" Yosuke screamed "It's not too late! Drop the fork! Save yourself!"

...

_"Smile Yu...your girlfriend cooked for you. She told you she would make you curry...just...swallow it" Yu told himself as he placed the slop in his mouth_

...

"Oh god" Yu said as he lost feeling in his body and his face slammed into the table

* * *

"We're sorry..." Chie apologized

"Sorry..." Yukiko added

"What're we gonna do? Our group's the only one without food." Yosuke groaned as his stomach grumbled "I mean, if was even slightly edible, that'd be one thing…but I'm not taking another bite of this Mystery Food X."

...

"Hey, something smells good…!" Chie noted, everyone then looked around, following the scent until the source of the smell, finding it nearby

"H-Hey…uh, Hanako?" Yosuke muttered to the large girl, currently sat at their table with a massive plate of curry "You…wouldn't happen to have any extra curry left, huh? C'mon, give us some! We're begging you! We're starving to death here!"

"No way" She groaned "I'm on a diet right now, so this is all that I made. It has to last me."

"All that you made…?" Chie groaned "It's like a bucketful…"

"I wonder if there's any way we can get something delivered here." Yosuke sighed

"But our cell phones don't get service up here…" Chie groaned "And dinnertime's almost over…"

"Well, suppose I should thank her later" Yu sighed as he dug into his bag

"Partner?" Yosuke questioned

"I told her that we were making food up here, but Mom insisted giving me these anyway" Yu stated as he pulled something out of the bag

"Are those..." Yukiko muttered

"BENTO BOXES!" Yosuke cried in happiness "Thank god! We're saved!"

"Your Mom's a lifesaver" Chie smiled as Yu handed her one

"I'll make sure she gets a raise for this!" Yosuke stated as he practically hugged Yu "Motoko Narukami; mother of the freaking year!"

**NIGHT/ YU &amp; YOSUKE'S TENT **

"How the hell did you end up here?" Yosuke asked

"My teach threatened to hold me back a year if I didn't show." Kanji explained "And the first-year's tent is all quiet, like someone died."

"Well, if you were in there with 'em, I'm not surprised…" Yosuke sighed

"Is it just you two in this tent?" Kanji asked as he inspected it

"The other guys called in sick. Smart move…" Yosuke groaned

"So it's okay if I hang out here?" Kanji asked

"Sure" Yu nodded

"Hey, you're a stand-up guy, Senpai." Kanji smiled "Don't worry, I won't make any trouble for you. They won't catch me unless we raise a ruckus."

"Alright, alright. You can sleep over there." Yosuke sighed as he pointed over to the corner of the tent

"Dude, there's a huge rock under there. How'm I supposed to sleep? It's gonna hurt like hell." Kanji groaned

"Pipe down…didn't you say you weren't going to make any noise?" Yosuke groaned

"Yo Senpai, can't you go just a little further back?" Kanji suggested

"Nope. There's a slope just past here. I'd roll down the hill in my sleep." Yosuke complained "If you don't like it here, go back to the first-year tent."

"Hey…wasn't your teacher some guy called King Moron?" Kanji asked "That guy stopped me outside earlier, and he pissed me off so bad I was about to lose it. He was going on and on about when I was in middle school, when he doesn't know shit about any of that…not only that, he was bullshitting about how I'll be expelled immediately if I cause trouble…that ain't funny, man."

"Yeah, that guy's set a speed record for jumping to conclusions…" Yosuke noted

"Check this right, I heard it from a guy in class" Kanji began "Apparently he was talking shit about those girls who died..."

"King Moron was talking about Ms. Yamano, Saki-senpai and Ebihara…?" Yosuke questioned

"It was like, _It's no surprise that people who are unfaithful or run away from home meet a bad end_…I dunno, maybe he was exaggerating. Everyone seems to hate that son of a bitch Morooka." Kanji muttered

"Damn, I can just picture him saying that…" Yosuke spat "He never shut up about me either when I moved here last year. Not that I remember anything he said…"

"Even if it's only a little true, it still pisses me off…" Kanji growled "The dickhead's a damn teacher, for god's sake."

"Ahhh, don't waste your energy getting pissed at that clown." Yosuke waved him off

"Let's all just go to sleep..." Yu suggested

**LATER**

"Don't you have more space on your side, Kanji?" Yosuke groaned

"Dude, I can't sleep over there, or my back's gonna break." Kanji complained

"Oh… Okay." Yosuke sighed "Uh… Hey."

"Yeah?" Kanji questioned

"Why'd you come to this tent?" Yosuke asked

"Huh? I already told you. Geez… 's wrong with you?" Kanji groaned

"This is as good a time as any, so…I-I want you to be honest with us." Yosuke said

"Uh… okay?" Kanji shrugged

"A-Are you really…" Yosuke muttered "You know…?"

"Am I really what…?" Kanji pushed on

"Yosuke..." Yu sighed

"I mean are you...are we gonna be safe in here with you?" Yosuke asked

"What-!?" Kanji spat as he shot up "Wh-Wh-What the hell's that supposed to mean!? I-I already told you guys I'm not like that!"

"W-Well then why are you all hot and bothered about it!?" Yosuke asked "That's just more suspicious!"

"Hell no! We settled this already, dammit! Right now, I'm…well…how do I put it…?" Kanji pondered

"Oh God, don't train off like that! You're freaking me out!" Yosuke shivered

"I'm trying to tell you that I have no problem being around girls now!" Kanji snapped

"Can you prove it!?" Yosuke asked

"P-Prove it…?" Kanji stuttered

"'Cause if you can't, we're gonna be stuck here all night, half scared to death." Yosuke confessed

"I won't" Yu added in

"To hell with this. If that's what you really think of me, then I'm gonna go hit the girls' tent right now!" Kanji snapped

"Huh? Wait, well that's a little extreme! You don't have to go that far!" Yosuke noted "They'll expel you if they find you! Don't tell me you forgot! King Moron's got his eye on you!"

"Yeah… like that'd stop a man like me!" Kanji roared

"Dude's seriously going for it…hey man, you gotta stop him." Yosuke said to Yu

"Kanji, calm down" Yu urged "Yosuke's just being a jackass, he does this"

"H-Hey!" Yosuke snapped

"Y'think I'm gonna put up with this crap!? I'll show you guys! To hell with King Moron! No one's stopping Kanji Tatsumi, dammit!" Kanji screamed to the heavens as he ran out of the tent "Raaaaaaahhhhh!"

"Uh, hey! Wait!" Yosuke cried out but it was to late "What a putz. I declare myself not responsible for anything that happens..."

**CHIE, YUKIKO AND HANAKO'S TENT**

"Now I get why we're the only three in here" Chie groaned as Hanako's snores tore through her eardrums

"I can't sleep..." Yukiko grumbled "I suppose it's a good thing Yu-kun's mother made that food or else we'd all be starving to death"

_"I can see where Yu gets his cooking skills" Chie noted_

"We can't sleep, we can't walk around…" Chie sighed "I wonder what Teddie's doing right now. Being alone all day's pretty rough when you think about it…you know, a while ago he-"

_**"ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ"**_

"Uuuugh…aaaargh!" Chie snapped as Hanako's snoring got even louder "That does it! Yukiko, we're outta here."

"Where'd we go, though? I don't think climbing down the mountain is a good idea…" Yukiko asked before turning to Hanako "Do you think she'd stop snoring if I covered her nose and mouth?"

"N-Nononononono! Yukiko, NO!" Chie cried, trying to prevent another murder in Inaba "Ugh…I can't take it anymore…"

_*RUSTLE*_

"Wh-Who's there!?" Chie cried

**YU AND YOSUKES THENT**

"Hey, you guys still up?" Came a voice from outside their tent

"Wha-Chie?! Yukiko?! What're you guys doing here!? This is the guys' side!" Yosuke cried

"Let us in!" Yukiko pleaded

"Don't be ridiculous! If King Moron finds out, we'll all be expelled! Go back to your tent!" Yosuke commanded

"We can't!" Chie stated

"Are there any rotten apples out and about!?" Came the loud slurred voice of Morooka "Any indecent students out there…?"

"A-Alright, hurry up and get in!" Yosuke stated as Chie and Yukiko practically leapt in

"Why're you two here?" Yu asked as Chie and Yukiko sat down

"Well, it's Kanji-kun…" Yukiko explained "He's out cold…"

"I-I don't know what happened!" Chie defended "H-He just came in and then, and then… he fainted all of a sudden. That's all. Right, Yukiko?"

"Huh? Y-Yeah." Yukiko nodded

"So there was no way we could sleep with him lying there, and you know… If we woke him up, he might've made a fuss." Chie said "That's why we left him there."

"What? That makes no sense. He busted into your tent, then suddenly fainted?" Yosuke questioned

"Listen up!" Came the heavy slurred roar of King Moron from god knows where "Being insolent and indecent are two different things!"

"It's him! He's right outside! H-Hey, turn the light off!" Yosuke commanded as Yu did just that

"Hey, are you two in there?!" Morooka spat, right outside their tent "Answer me!"

"W-We're here!" Yu confirmed

"Huh…? Ahhh, so you're in there…" Morooka groaned "Is Hanamura already asleep?"

"Yessir! Fast asleep, Sir!"

"Don't get cute, Hanamura! Shut up and go back to sleep." Morooka slurred then let out a yawn "Ugh, I think I had one too many. I'm so sleepy…"

"There goes a couple of years off my lifespan." Yosuke sighed as King Moron left

"No joke…" Chie groaned "We were nearly expelled…"

"Hey, this is you guys' fault!" Yosuke snapped

"Wh-What else were we supposed to do!? Anyways, we can't leave now. We'll sneak out before the others wake up tomorrow. Is that good enough for you!?" Chie suggested

"What're you so pissed off for…?" Yosuke questioned before the girls started to make room "H-Hey, we didn't say you could-Dammit, you owe us for this!"

**EARLY HOURS OF THE MORNING**

"Hey, you still awake?" Chie asked quietly

"Yeah..." Yu nodded

"This is...not how imagined how I'd be spending tonight" Chie blushed "I didn't think we'd be sleeping together, this soon in our relationship

...

W-Wait, that's not what I meant"

"I know, I know..." Yu chuckled

"Sorry about almost killing you with the curry" Chie apologized "If your mom hadn't given you that Bento, we'd all of starved"

"I could get her to teach you, if you want" Yu suggested "She taught me"

"That'd be nice" She smiled "Hopefully, one day I can actually make something good for you"

"As long as you're happy" Yu smiled, quickly checking that Yosuke and Yukiko were asleep and then planted a small kiss on Chie's lips "That's all that matters to me"

"Aw, sheeh" Chie blushed with a smile before planting a kiss on Yu "Come on...I feel guilty enough talking about us so close to Yukiko"

"Sorry, sorry" Yu smiled "Let's get some sleep..."

**JUNE 18/ SCHOOL CAMPOUT**

"I swear, she's been ignoring me" Kou groaned

"Not this again" Daisuke growled "Just freaking talk to her, and don't give me _it's not that simple _crap. Take it from someone whose had a girlfriend, it _is _that simple"

"Maybe you're right..." Kou sighed

"I saw her along with the others take off towards the river" Daisuke noted

"Thanks" Kou smiled with a small slap on Daisuke's shoulder before taking off

**RIVERBANK**

"Looks like we're the only ones here!" Yosuke smiled as the group overlooked the river from the edge of a small cliff, save for Kanji who was hunched over "What's wrong? Got a stomach ache?"

"No, it's just…I thought I got pissed and ran out of the tent last night…" Kanji tried to remember "It's so weird…was it a dream? When I woke up, I was in Yosuke-senpai's tent…"

"It-It was a dream. Must've been a dream." Chie suggested

"Okay…?" Kanji shrugged

"Alright, then let's get swimming!" Yosuke yelled happily

"Are you seriously taking a swim?" Kanji questioned "I'll pass… I'm still all stiff".

"What're you guys looking at us for…?" Chie questioned "If you guys wanna swim, go right ahead."

"You know, you two still owe us." Yosuke grinned

"Huh? Whoa whoa whoa, we're not going in there." Chie shook her head "I mean, we do owe you, but…Oh yeah! We don't have swimsuits with us! Man, of all the luck!"

"Y-Yeah, it really is unfortunate." Yukiko nodded

"Oh, I see how it is." Yosuke groaned "We put up with your dinner, we save you from King Moron, and you won't even have some fun with us in the river."

"N-No, it's really too bad." Chie said with a fake laugh "It'd be no problem if I just had a swimsuit. Haha…"

"Well then, I got you covered!" Yosuke smiled as he pulled out something from behind his back "Taadah!"

"What the-?!" Chie cursed

"They're Junes-brand originals, from our brand-new line of swimwear that just came in for the summer!" Yosuke smiled as he held up two swimsuits "I had a clerk friend of mine choose 'em for me while you guys were shopping for the food. Pretty swanky, huh?"

"Dude, that's just wrong…" Chie groaned

"Did you have those this whole time…?" Yukiko asked

"C'mon, let's all go swimming!" Yosuke smiled

"What should we do, Yukiko…?" Chie asked

"_It'd be no problem if I just had a swimsuit_." Yosuke echoed

"Urgh…" Chie groaned

"Y'know, we really were looking forward to dinner." Yosuke pouted

"Ngh…" Yukiko grumbled

"I wonder what would've happened if we didn't help you guys last night…" Yosuke chuckled

"We get it already! Sheesh, you never let things go!" Chie snapped as she snatched the swimsuit away from him

"Alright!" Yosuke laughed as Chie and Yukiko left to get changed

"Oi, Senpai, you okay?" Kanji questioned Yu "Your face is all red"

"I...I'm fine..." Yu nodded slowly

**A FEW MINUTES LATER**

"Whoa! Senpai, those trunks are the bomb!" Kanji complimented

"Aren't they though?" Yu smiled as Kanji admired his grey swimming shorts

"How far did those two go to get changed?" Yosuke sighed, also having changed into swimming shorts

"Come on..." Chie sighed as she and Yukiko came into view "Let's get in"

"Whoa..." Yosuke muttered as he observed the two

"Whoa..." Yu repeated, though he was only observing one of them...

Kanji just shrugged

"Hey...don't just stand there" Chie blushed as she could feel Yu check her out. His eyes gandering over her toned body.

_"She has abs...whoa" Yu noted to himself as he observed the outline of the muscles on Chie's stomach_

She couldn't help but take a peek at him...

_"He has ABS?!" She cried "When did he get those?!"_

"The hell are you just standing around in silence for?" Kanji asked

"You...you look great..." Yu muttered, making sure not to appear he was talking exclusively to Chie

"Wh-Where did that come from!?" Chie splutted

"Man, this is going even better than I expected." Yosuke smiled "Kinda makes up for having to eat that Mystery Food X last night. C'mon, you guys gotta admit I chose some good suits! Those girls might be childish on the inside, but I bet they're gonna turn into some fine-looking women before too long! Don't you think so, Yu?"

...

"D-Do you like these outfits, Yu-kun?" Yukiko asked

"Uhh..." Yu stalled

"Ah! Yu-kun!" Yukiko shrieked

"W-Wha?" Yu questioned before he felt something drip down his face, touching his finger to his face, he discovered he had a nosebleed "O-Oh! This isn't-"

"Nooo!" Yukiko squealed as she slapped Yu which sent him over the edge and into the water below

"Yu-kun!" Chie shouted

"Hey, what's go-" Came the voice of Kou, who instantly froze when he witness the scene, and Chie in a swimsuit "W-W-Whoa..."

He quickly retreated

"Aw come on, you can't blame the guy" Yosuke laughed

"Okay, that's it, you're going in!" Chie roared as she nailed Yosuke with a punt to the gut

"Argh!" Yosuke cried out as he landed in the water "I-I-I-It's freezing!"

"Hey, you okay Senpai?" Kanji called down

"Ah! Kanji-kun!" Yukiko shrieked

"W-Wha?" Kanji questioned, not noticing the nosebleed running down his face

"Not you too!" Yukiko cried out as she and Chie booted Kanji over the edge

"What did I doooooooo?!" Kanji yelled as he plumetted down

* * *

"Hey, yo" Daisuke greeted as Kou returned, a visible nosebleed on his face "Did you talk to her?"

"No...but..." Kou said dreamily

"But?" Daisuke questioned

"I think I love her even more..."

"Oh for gods sake..." Daisuke sighed

* * *

So yeah, the warning at the top was about the Gas Station Attendant

Will they play the same role they did in the game?

Say it with me now;

**YOU'LL HAVE TO READ TO FIND OUT**

Now then; the reason I decided to get Yu and Chie together so early in the story is because I see no point in a drawn out will they/won't they dynamic when you _know _they will. That said, Kou, Yukiko and Yumi will provide some romantic conflict here and there...


	8. Himiko

**HIMIKO**

**JUNE 18/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"I'm home" Dojima called out as he stepped in

"GO TO HELL YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Motoko roared

"W-W-What did I do?!" Dojima cried

"Oh, Ryotaro..." Motoko noted, walking into view a with a cell phone in hand "That...wasn't about you..."

"What's up?" He asked

"It was...Shinya" Motoko sighed

"Your Ex-Husband?" Dojima asked

"Not if he can help it..." She sighed "He's refusing to sign the divorce papers, he says he wants me back..."

...

"Are you-"

"No! Never!" Motoko snapped "I'll never go back to him...he lost me when he had that affair 16 years ago..."

"You...still love him, don't you?" Dojima questioned

...

"I do...I do" Motoko sniffed "I hate him...I hate him so much for what he did to me and Yu but...I..."

"It's okay..." Dojima sighed as he walked over and hugged his sister

"He's..." She sobbed into Dojima shoulder "That...bastard, he's...I won't take him back"

* * *

"Your hair's longer..."

"Huh?" Yu asked

"Your hair, it's longer" Yukiko repeated

"Hey, yeah..." Yosuke noted

"It looks good on you, Senpai" Kanji added "That...that didn't sound weird, did it?"

"Oh yeah, I decided to grow it out a while back" Yu stated "It looked too much like my dad's hair, so..."

"Hey, Chie, did you notice Yu-kun's hair?" Yukiko asked

"Huh...Y-Yeah" Chie nodded "I was there when he told me he was growing it out"

"Oh really?" Yosuke questioned before grinning "You two having secret meetings we don't know about?"

"N-No!" Chie snapped

"It's nothing like that" Yu added

"Oh, well that's okay th-" Yukiko began but then stopped herself

"Come on, it's almost time to go home" Chie changed the subject

"Thank god" Yosuke sighed "This camping trip was a nightmare..."

"It wasn't _that _bad" Chie groaned

"You kicked me into the river!" Yosuke choked "_While _King Moron was regurgitating upstream!"

"I don't think I'll ever feel clean again" Kanji groaned

**JUNE 19/SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"K-Kanji?" Yu questioned as the boy sped past him

"No time to talk Senpai!" Kanji called out as he continued to run

"Are you a friend of Kanji?" Came a voice Yu vaguely recognized, he turned around and met with Aika, the employee of Aiya

"Yeah" Yu nodded "What's wrong?"

"Kanji's mother was taken to hospital" She explained to a stunned Yu

"His...Mom" Yu repeated before he took off after him

**INABA MUNICIPAL HOSPITAL**

"It...it wasn't nessacery to come here with me..." Kanji explained to Yu before the two came across Kanji's mother along with a small boy "Ma! You all right!? You were taken to the hospital!? Someone do this to you...!?"

"Goodness, but you look pale." She noted

"Never mind me! What about you...!?" Kanji asked as he looked his mother over "Huh!? You're okay?"

"I wasn't taken to the hospital. I took someone." Kanji's mother explained before noting the small boy next to her "The poor thing got hit by a bicycle right in front of our shop. He hit his head, so I had a doctor examine him, he said there's no damage, thank goodness. The one who hit him was a boy from your school. When he saw the poor child fall, he ran away. Why don't you find him and give him a little scolding?"

"Cut the crap!" Kanji roared "You've got not no idea how I felt!"

"I'm fine" Kanji's mother laughed "Your mother isn't kicking the bucket that easily. It's not like you to get so worried over such a little thing."

"Shut up, you old cow!" Kanji snapped before taking off

"Kanji!" Yu called out as he ran after him, chasing him down to the bottom floor, until they stopped to regain their breath

"That...old...bat" Kanji panted

"Are you okay?" Yu asked

"I thought I faced all'a my bad parts back there...but not everything can change just like that, huh...?" Kanji sighed "Sorry for draggin' you around, but If I'd been by myself, I might been even more scared...Hope I can repay the favor someday, Yu-senpai"

"It's alright" Yu waved it off

"I'm...I'm going home, see ya" Kanji said as walked out of the door

"That boy...we were both going home... He didn't have to run away like that." Kanji's mother sighed as she came into view "Oh...you're Yu-kun? You came to our store with Yuki-chan, right?"

"Yes, Ma'am" Yu nodded

"I've been hearing a lot about you from Kanji." She smiled "_Senpai this_ and _Senpai that_...he must really like you." She smiled "I'm sorry to have made you both come all the way here. He hates hospitals, you see...his father... my husband died here."

"Oh..." Yu mumbled

"Kanji happened to be somewhere else when he collapsed..." She explained with a sigh "So I think he was scared today. But it's nice you came with him, he's always had trouble getting along with people. He didn't have any friends like you before"

"Be...cause of this hobbies?" Yu asked

"Oh, he told you?" Kanji's mother asked "He would always rather play house instead of catch, or go to home ec instead of P.E, so he never had any male friends, but the girls didn't accept him either. After a while, he started getting into fights every day and bleaching his hair...I was worried about him...but lately, he seems to be having fun, I haven't seen him so happy in a long time..please take care of him."

...

"I will Ma'am" Yu bowed "He's my friend..."

**EVENING/DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

_"That concludes Rise Kujikawa's statement regarding her temporary leave of absence from the entertainment industry. We're short on time, so if anyone has any remaining questions, we ask that you please keep them brief."_

_"I'm Ishioka from Lady's View. It says here that you'll be recuperating-are you facing physical problems?"_

_"No, my health isn't an issue-"_

"Poor girl looks exhausted" Motoko noted as group sat around watching TV during dinner "I suppose a life in showbiz is much harder than it looks"

_"Psychological problems, then?"_

_"Wha…?"_

_"Rumor has it you'll be staying with your relatives, but isn't that in Inaba where the murders have been taking place!?"_

_"Huh? Um…"_

_"Is it true that they run a traditional tofu shop? Will you be helping out with the family business!?"_

_"No more questions!" A spokesperson called out "This press conference is over! Clear the way, please!"_

"Is Rise-chan quitting her job?" Nanako asked

"Who knows…but if this is her hometown, we'll have to deal with everyone who's trying to get a glimpse…" Dojima sighed

_"I'm tired of diets, going to the gym, good thing there's something even I can handle!" Came a voice from a commercial _

"Oh they even got poor girl doing commercials in swimwear" Motoko sighed "I swear, every man in the industry is a pervert..."

_"Quelorie Magic is made for those worried about their calorie intake and body fat. It'll slim you down in no time!"_

"Rise Kujikawa, huh?" Dojima noted "The one good thing about this town was that it had nothing of note, and now we get all the buzz…what's going on?"

"She's pretty cute, isn't she?" Motoko asked her son "But I sense you're not interested in her, right?"

"Huh?" Yu questioned, earning a giggle from his mother

**JUNE 20/ EARLY MORNING**

"Yo Senpai" Kanji yawned "Oh, sorry, I haven't completely woken up yet…oh yeah, the shopping district seemed different today when I was passing by...like, everyone was really hustlin' more than usual… I wonder what's going on."

"There's a celebrity moving here" Yu expalined

"'Serious?" Kanji questioned "The hell's a celeb doing moving out to the boonies?"

...

"Hey...you okay?" Yu asked "You know...after yesterday?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine" Kanji shrugged "I was pissed at Ma but it's all said and done now"

"I'm just glad you're fine" Yu sighed

"You...you're worrying about me?" Kanji blushed before letting out a small smile "T-T-Thanks...Senpai"

"You can just call me Yu, you know" Yu smiled

"W-W-W-Whoa...I...I...if it's okay to you, I'll stick to Senpai" Kanji stuttered as his face turned red

"Suit yourself" Yu chuckled

**SCHOOL**

"Hey, there he is." Chie noted as Kanji stepped into the classroom "You've been coming to school pretty often lately. What's up?"

"It's this annoying thing called the mandatory attendance policy." Kanji groaned

"But man, seeing you here kinda reminds me of the school campout." Yosuke added

"I thought we were all gonna forget about what happened…" Kanji muttered

"Oh… Sorry." Yosuke muttered

"Eh, whatever." Kanji shrugged "So hey, you guys see the news?"

"Wasn't I the one who told you?" Yu questioned

"News…? Oh, that stuff about Rise Kujikawa taking a break from showbiz?" Chie asked "I wonder why. She was just getting popular lately…"

"Just goes to prove that being an idol is tough work." Yosuke noted

"Is she that popular?" Yu asked

"Heck yeah man!" Yosuke smiled "It hasn't been that long since her debut, but at this rate, she'll be a top-class idol in no time. To be honest, I'm a fan! She's such a cutie pie!"

"A cutie pie…? What are you, 80?" Chie groaned in disgust "But I think she used to live here, so she must have a lot of local fans."

"The news said she's going to her grandmother's tofu shop, right?" Yukiko asked "Do they mean Marukyu…?"

"Marukyu?" Yosuke questioned

"Marukyu Tofu. Our inn was serving their tofu until recently." Yukiko revealed

"Oh, that place in the shopping district! I pass by it all the time." Yosuke remembered before piping up" Wait, does that mean I can meet Rise if I go to her tofu shop!?"

"You seem pretty excited" Yu noted

"Hey, aren't we getting a little sidetracked from the point here?" Chie spat "Wait, did you forget about the murders!? You're the one who said the connection between the victims might be the TV! She could be the next target!"

"C'mon, it's not like Rise started showing up on TV just recently." Yosuke shrugged "Also, how could Rise be connected to the incidents so far?"

"I wondered the same thing, so I did some research." Yukiko added in "It seems that she had no personal interaction with Ms. Yamano, they've just been on the same show once or twice."

"She's been an idol for a while now, but she's the talk of the town, thanks to the news last night." Chie listed "And she is moving here, after all."

"So, if our assumptions are correct, she fits the pattern…" Yosuke began "She'll probably be targeted next...and if she is, that narrows down the killer's methods even further."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kanji questioned sternly

"Kanji, listen carefully..." Yosuke sighed "If Rise is next then when can finally be sure once and for all that the victims aren't connected to the first case and that means the killer's targets are people who've been shown on TV recently, get it?"

"Huh? Ohhh…yeah, okay." Kanji nodded

"Alright, now we have to keep a close eye on everything Rise does!" Yosuke grinned "Let's do it!"

"Sheesh, he's all pumped up…" Chie groaned

**JUNES**

"Hmmm…notebooks, three colors of pens, a loose-leaf folder, labels at the stationary department…" Yukiko read off a list "Then the furniture department. I want to look at the desks. Those and the lamps…"

"Why...do you need all this?" Yu questioned

"Studying!" Yukiko said with a smile full of energy "You know...for a job license…though I haven't decided on exactly which one I'll pursue. But I was thinking of trying for all the ones I feel I can earn.I've started working at night, you see. Remember the job you told me about? Thanks to that, I have some money…"

"Well if it isn't the future manager of the Amagi Inn?" Came a voice Yu didn't know. Twisting his head, he found a tall suited man along with two others who seemed to be crew members

"…I see you haven't gone home yet." Yukiko muttered

"Well, I can't very well go anywhere until the next bus or train departs. This really is the boonies." The suited man scoffed "Stuck here with nothing to do…man, the countryside is the dumps."

"I beg to differ." Yukiko stated, just as Yu shot the man a look

"Turning down sweet deals is part of country life, too, is it? Hahaha. Oh… I'm sorry." The man said with a mock laugh before him and his crew departed

"Those people are from some TV station." She explained to Yu "They wanted to cover the Amagi Inn…"

"And you turned them down?" Yu questioned the obvious

"Yes…" Yukiko embarrassingly admitted "It's a _news of the weird_ show… It isn't real journalism. You know that our inn was associated with Ms. Yamano's murder, right?"

"Yeah" Yu nodded

"They want to make a special called, _Hot Springs Getting Too Hot for the Amagis!?_ It was an abhorrent title. Mother turned them away." Yukiko explained "But maybe she shouldn't have declined…I mean…If it gets a bad reputation…We'd lose customers, and the inn really would close its doors...and then…I'd feel better about leaving."

"You...haven't made your mind up if you really want to leave...have you?" Yu asked

Yukiko took her time to reply...

"No..." She muttered darkly "There's no real point in saying things like that. I'm leaving now under my own power…my life is in my hands now. And of course, I want to help everyone. You too, for being such a patient listener all the time"

"It's no problem" Yu smiled "I'll take time out for all my friends"

"_Friend_, huh?" Yukiko mumbled before looking up and smiling "Well, let's go shopping!"

**JUNE 21/ GAS STATION**

"An Idol huh?" Sho scoffed "I ain't got no interest in some fake personality bitch on TV"

"She's the next" The attendant told him "And of course, they will continue to pursue their leads...and so you shall pursue them"

"Huh?" Sho question as the Attendant threw him a pile of something "What's this?"

"A Yasogami High Uniform" The Attendant explained "For you to fit in"

"Like fuck! I ain't going to school!" Sho roared as he threw the clothes on the ground

"It's merely for you to blend in" The Attendant told him "From now on, we must keep an eye on them..."

"This sucks..." Sho grumbled

"It is nessacery, lest you forget that only _I _can provide that world which you so desire" The Attendant rasped

"All I desire is to achieve that world, for _him_"

The Attendant twisted his head around, facing an unusally stern faced Sho

"And now _the other one _shows his face" The attendant scoffed "Your time shall come too..."

"The sooner this is done, the better" _Sho _scoffed "When they die, it will finally be time"

"Don't forget what needs to be done first" The Attendant said "You and your Persona will be needed for the final act. Once I confront Yu Narukami, then the end will finally begin and you will finally have the world you so desire"

...

"Very well" _Sho _nodded

"And of course, your revenge will also be achieved" The Attendant smiled "But other things come first.."

"When we shall we take _it_?" _Sho _questioned

"Soon" The Attendant nodded "The disappearance of an Anti-Shadow weapon will most certainly gain _their _attention"

"All we do now is wait..." _Sho _said with a sinister grin

**MIDNIGHT/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"A girl..." Yu muttered as he stared at the blurry image on the Midnight Channel _"Is she...in a swimsuit? Wait, is that Rise Kujikawa? Why is it zooming in on her che-Oh..."_

No sooner did it end when he heard his phone ring

_"Hello!? Hey, did you see that!?" Yosuke cried "That was Rise for sure! Rise Kujikawa!"_

"No doubt" Yu nodded

_"Thought so! Oh…I guess I shouldn't be so excited. There's a chance she might get kidnapped…" Yosuke sighed C'mon, we should go there tomorrow! What was it called again…? Oh yeah, Marukyu Tofu! Dude, my heart's pounding already…Well, see you tomorrow!"_

"You are way too excited over this..." Yu sighed

_"Oh?...Oh, yeah" Yosuke sighed "If she's on the TV then that means she's probably going to be kidnapped right? We'll all meet tomorrow and discuss what we need to do. I'll see ya"_

"Night" Yu nodded as he hung up

**JUNE 22/ SCHOOL**

_"Did you hear? It looks like Rise Kujikawa is really here!"_

_"You know the tofu store Marukyu? The owners of that place have the same last name, Kujikawa!"_

_"Seriously!? Hey, I practically live next door!"_

"I've been hearing that there's a big crowd at Marukyu." Yukiko said

"I'm not surprised." Chie shrugged "But was it really her on yesterday's Midnight Channel? Didn't she seem a little… different?"

"It was her, no doubt about it! Her curves… Her posture… Even her beautiful, slim legs!" Yosuke said dreamily before shooting a small look to Chie's legs

"Hey, if you don't like my legs then don't look at them!" Chie blushed

"What do you think?" Yosuke asked Yu

"I think her legs are fine" Yu shrugged

"WHA-?!" Chie gasped

"Not that!" Yosuke snapped

"So are we going?" Kanji asked "I don't really care about celebrities, but it's not like I got anything better to do...I'll tag along."

"Sorry, but me and Yukiko have plans. Give us a call if anything comes up." Chie stated

"Well, shall we get going?" Yosuke asked "But let's be clear on one thing: we're not spectators. We're on an investigation, got it?"

**SHOPPING DISTRICT/ OUTSIDE MARUKYU TOFU SHOP**

"Why'd you drag us along?" Daisuke groaned "I don't even like her music"

"Dude, everyone likes Risette!" Kou defended

"Yeah, because every fat, bispectaled otaku out there thinks that, despite their disgusting appearance, they're Rise's unrealised dream guy" Daisuke groaned "And they'll flip their shit, calling her a slut and burn her merch if she's so much as in the same photograph as a guy"

"Dude, harsh..." Yosuke muttered

"Hey, isn't that..." Yu mumbled

"Oh, Adachi-san?" Yosuke questioned as they spotted the detective outside the Tofu shop "Did something happen?"

"Oh, it's you guys." Adachi said with a sigh "These gawkers keep streaming in with their cars, trying to park in the middle of the shopping district."

"Why's that?" Kanji asked

"Don't you know? Rise Kujikawa's here." Adachi informed them "Hey, did you see her already? Is she there? Which is it?"

"Huh…? We're askin' why a plainclothes detective is here doing traffic control." Kanji grumbled

"Oh… Uh, well…the Inaba Police Department isn't that big, and we don't have enough staff…" Adachi gulped before scampering away "Well, I still have work to do, so I'll see you later."

"Dude…you managed to scare off a police detective on active duty" Yosuke said in awe

"I wasn't trying to scare the guy, I just said what I was thinking." Kanji shrugged it off

"But you're right, it's weird for the police to come out like this…" Yosuke noted "Hey…you think the police suspect that Rise might be the next target, too?"

"Indeed we do" Came a voice, sending the group into panic, turning around, they came face to face with Katsuya Suou

"Hey, you're that detective we met on the Riverbank once" Yosuke noted "Your name was...Tatsuya?"

"No, that would be my brother" Katsuya smiled "I'm Katsuya Suou"

"Oh, we...we're not doing anything weird here" Kou tried to explain

"Oh? But it seems you've come to realise that the people on the Midnight Channel are the ones who go missing" Katsuya noted

"W-W-W-Well..." Yosuke stuttered

"It's perfectly alright, It's not a hard pattern to notice" Katsuya smiled "In fact...I see three of the said missing persons right in front of me..."

"What're you saying?" Kanji spat

"Oh relax, I'm not implying anything, I'm sure you lot have been friends for a long time" Katsuya shot a friendly smile "It's a small town and I'm guessing you all go to the same school"

"Y-Yeah!" Yosuke nodded "That's exactly it! All of us have been friends since we were kids!"

"Really? But aren't you Dojima-san's nephew?" Katsuya asked Yu "I thought you only came to Inaba in April"

"O-O-O-Oh, that!" Yosuke panicked

"Alrght, clear the way, coming through! Hey, Adachi!" Came the familiar voice of Dojima as he stepped out of the Tofu shop "Dammit… I told him not to leave his post, hey, what are you guys doing-Hm? Kanji Tatsumi…!? Are you friends with them?"

"Like it's any of your business…" Kanji scoffed

"And Detective Suou, what are you doing here?" Dojima asked

"Oh, I'm merely passing by" Katsuya stated as he turned away and began to leave

"If you say so." Dojima mumbled before questioning the boys "So I'll ask again: What are you all doing here?"

"Oh, um…w-well, who wouldn't wanna come check it out if they found out an idol's family ran an ordinary tofu store?" Yosuke tried to explained "I'm, uh…a big fan!"

…

"Fine." Dojima sighed as he began to take off "But remember, she might be a celebrity, but this is her home. Try not to bother them too much."

"That cop's your uncle, eh…?" Kanji questioned as Dojima left "So, what the hell was that about? Are you guys under suspicion…?"

"Well, they did take us in once…" Yosuke sighed "But we can't just tell him everything, right? If we say anything about the other world, we only look more suspicious. They'll be watching us all the time."

"Yikes, that's rough" Daisuke yelped before turning around to gaze as the departing Katsuya "I had no idea we were working so close to the Police here...

Just as Daisuke was noting this, he spotted an unfamiliar face, down the street just by the gas station. His bright red hair and green shirt standing out

"Who's that guy?" He questioned

"Huh, who?" Kou asked, gaining Daisuke's gaze

"That guy" Daisuke said as he turned around and found the spot where the boy stood, now empty "Where'd he..."

_"Man, there's no one in there but the old lady. Risette isn't here after all…"_

_"I heard that she really is already here, but it might've just been a rumor…Well, it was fun while it lasted."_

"A rumor!? What, she's not here!? Seriously!?" Yosuke cried

"Pfft, you sound like the world's about to end." Kanji groaned

"Shuddup!" Yosuke snapped before sighing "Anyways, now that all those people are gone, we might as well check inside. I'll buy something."

"Didn't you say once that you can't eat Tofu?" Yu asked

"How'd you remember?" Yosuke smiled

"I can't eat it either" Daisuke added "Stuff is like shitty marshmallow..."

"Why don't you get Ganmodoki?" Yu suggested

"Wait, what's Ganmodoki again?" Yosuke questioned "Is it the kind with a rice cake in it?"

"There's no rice cakes in 'em… They're sorta like…fried tofu patties with veggies and stuff in, and…" Kanji listed

"Ohhh, okay, I know what you mean! I think I can eat that." Yosuke nodded

**INSIDE MARUKYO TOFU**

"Sure enough, looks like the only one here is your typical old lady" Yosuke sighed as he spotted someone over the counter as the group looked around the store

"Man, why don't you just ask if she's in back?" Kanji suggested "'Scuse me!"

"Yes, may I help you?" An Old attendant asked

"What the-!?" Yosuke coughed as he looked back over the counter "Then, who's that…?"

"Hmm?" Came the mumble of the girl over the counter, Yosuke immediately froze up. Before him stood the real-life, actually Risette

"Uh… Are you Rise?" Kanji asked

"Yeah. So?" She questioned

"No way…are you really Risette?" Yosuke asked excitingly

"What do you want?" She questioned once again with a groan, she didn't have time to deal with fanboys

"Huh…? Oh, sorry, um…some tofu, please!" Yosuke requested

"Tofu…? Which kind?" Rise asked

"Huh? Wh-Which one's which again…?" Yosuke asked

"If you're going to eat it by itself, you should go with silken. Momen's better for cooking…depends how you use it." Rise listed

"U-Um…" Yosuke stuttered before turning to Kanji "Psst, Kanji! Order something!"

"Wha-!? Why're you making me do it!? You already picked ganmo a second ago!" Kanji spat before letting out a sigh and turning to Rise "Dude here wants three Ganmodoki"

"Oh, I see…" Rise nodded "I'll go get them."

"Man, she's nothing like she is on TV" Yosuke whispered to the group as the girl wandered around the store "I wonder if she's just tired...but man, but it's really her… I'm so glad I came! Mission comple-"

"We haven't even done what we came here for yet!" Daisuke groaned

"Oh, um…!" Yosuke noted before talking to Rise "H-Have you noticed anything weird lately?"

"Weird…? Like stalkers?" Rise questioned "Are you guys fans of mine?"

"I wouldn't say _we,_ but yeah, dude here's a big fan" Kanji said with a gesture to Yosuke

"You little…! Why'd you let that slip!?" Yosuke snapped

"Her curves, her posture, even her beautiful slim legs…" Kanji quoted "Ya finished checkin' em out yet, or what?"

"Waaaaaaah! Y-You're doing this on purpose, aren't you!?" Yosuke snapped before defending himself to Rise "I didn't say that! I never said any of that!"

"Maybe you know already, but it's been dangerous in Inaba lately. That's why we've been investigating some stuff." Kou stated

"Oh yeah?" Rise asked

"Do you know about the TV show that comes on at midnight?" Yu asked "The thing they call the Midnight Channel?"

"Yeah" She nodded

"Oh, you know about it…wait…what!? You mean you saw it last night!?" Yosuke shouted

"I heard the rumors from some friends of mine." Rise nodded "But that girl last night wasn't me. I've never been filmed wearing that swimsuit before...and the bustline…"

"Huh?" Yosuke questioned

"Mine aren't that big."

"Oh yeah, I see what you mean now…" Yosuke nodded before jumping out of his skin "I-I mean…what am I saying!? U-Um, I'm sorry…!"

"Don't apologize so much. You're funny." Rise smiled

"Hey, she smiled." Yosuke said with a smile of his own

"What is that show about, anyway?" Rise asked

"Well, we're not too sure either…" Yosuke sighed "But you know there's been stuff happening here, right?"

"The people who appear on The Midnight Channel end up getting kidnapped" Yu stated to her "Kou, Daisuke and Kanji here all appeared on it and ended up disappearing a few days later"

"I know this is sudden, but we're not lying" Kanji tried to explain

"Huh… So that wasn't a dream. I was tired yesterday, but I couldn't sleep. And it was raining, so I decided to try that rumor I'd heard about…hmm." Rise pondered before smiling at the group "Alright, thanks…I'll be careful. Here you go, three ganmo. That'll be 600 yen.

There's extra tofu in there for everyone…a little thank-you for worrying about me."

"Whoa, seriously? Thanks!" Yosuke smiled

"Yosuke-senpai, you can't eat tofu, right? Want me to take yours?" Kanji suggested

"Hell no! I always eat what people give me." Yosuke said as the group departed

"Bye-bye!" Rise waved, keeping her eyes fixated on the Silver Haired boy

...

"Hey, you guys notice the weird blue butterflies around?" Yu questioned as the group walked down the street

"Yeah, it's weird" Kou noted "I didn't even notice them until a month ago"

"Probably just some summer thing..." Yosuke shrugged

**EVENING/ MARUKYU TOFU**

"Thank you very much, the receipts in the bag" Rise smiled as she handed the bag over

"Seems like the crowds are thinning out, so we'll be leaving now." Adachi nodded "If it gets rowdy again, just give us a call at the station."

"Okay." She nodded

"Uh, hang on a second. Sorry, but there's some things I'd like to ask you." Dojima interrupted "You do know that there have been multiple violent cases around here lately, yeah? Have you seen anyone suspicious around?"

"Not really…It's been like always." Rise denied

"Like always…well, you're an idol, so I imagine you deal with folks like fans, paparazzi and stalkers quite often." Dojima noted "What made you take a break from showbiz?"

"Does it really matter?…I just needed a rest." She shrugged

"And have you registered for school?" Dojima questioned

"I'm planning on going to Yasogami High. It was the closest." She confirmed

"I don't mean to alarm you, but you do have some things in common with the recent kidnap victims" Dojima informed her "That's why, well…"

"I might be kidnapped, right?" She questioned "I've been told that before. Don't worry, I'll be careful."

"Huh…? Someone told you already?" Adachi questioned

"It was five guys…four of them were wearing uniforms and one was wearing a gym outfit, so I think they were high school students…" Rise recalled

"Did one of them happen to look…how do I put it…did he look something like a gang member?" Dojima asked

"Wait… You think she's talking about your nephew and his friends?" Adachi questioned

...

"Something smells here." Dojima muttered "The recent disappearances…between those and the three homicides, there's too many questions with no answers. To tell the truth, I followed my detective's intuition and came here to warn her. How could high school kids who know less than we do beat us to the punch…? Were they just making up an excuse to talk to a famous celebrity…? Or…"

"Sir…?" Adachi asked as the duo turned to leave

"Yasogami High…" He muttered again "The second and third victims, Saki Konishi and Ai Ebihara, and four other students went missing from there"

"I guess the investigation of the ones involved with the school hasn't turned up anything either…" Adachi sighed "Aren't we gonna be in trouble if this keeps up? The prefectural police will be coming soon to-"

"They're the least of your worries! Keep your head in the game." Dojima commanded

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD/ DINNER TABLE**

"We have a lot of Tofu..." Nanako muttered as the family sat around the table

"Yeah… It tastes great." Dojima muttered before turning to Yu "You visited Rise Kujikawa today. What did you talk about?"

"Oh, you met that girl?" Motoko questioned

"We..." Yu began before letting out a sigh, was there any real point if he lied? it might annoy Dojima but it would prove he wasn't hiding anything "We talked about the kidnappings"

"I told you to keep your hands off this, this is a job for the police." Dojima stated, a little stunned by his nephews honesty, he let out a sigh. "Forget it, I shouldn't have brought it up."

"You guys met Rise-chan?" Nanako asked her father and cousin "Wait...are you… fighting again?"

"Of course not…" Dojima sighed "Here, hurry and finish your dinner."

**YU'S ROOM/ MIDNIGHT**

"She's still there..." Yu noted as he observed the midnight channel, his phone ringing the instant the screen went blank

_"That was her, no doubt" Yosuke claimed "But she looked...I dunno...creepy? But that was definitely her, we need to meet up tomorrow, see ya"_

**JUNE 23/ JUNES**

"That was her, no doubt" Daisuke claimed "We could make out her face this time, it couldn't be anyone else"

"So that's it, 100% confirmed, the people on TV are the ones who get kidnapped" Kou nodded

"Exactly!" Yosuke agreed "So we can rules out the assumption that all the victims are connected to the incident with Ms. Yamano."

"My Mom walked by the Tofu store this morning, she said Rise was still there" Yu added

"Yeah, I took a peek this morning, and she was still at the shop." Yosuke nodded "So I'm guessing that _TV Show_ thing doesn't appear on the Midnight Channel until after the person enters the TV."

"Teddie said before that it might be the victim's own creation upon entering that world." Yukiko recalled "I didn't understand at all at first, but now I feel it may be true. The one that appears on TV is your other self…maybe the victim's true feelings are shown unconsciously."

"But…we see them on the Midnight Channel before they disappear." Chie countered "You know, when it's still really fuzzy and you can't tell who it is. How do you explain that part?"

"Yeah…It always happens before the person disappears, like an advance notice…" Yosuke pondered

"Or like a ransom note." Chie added "But who are they announcing it to? And for what?"

"I dunno, ask the killer." Yosuke shrugged "There's a bunch of stuff I still don't understand."

"Is it possible that we see those images for the same reason?" Yukiko questioned

"Huh? What do you mean?" Chie asked

"If the Midnight Channel shows the victim's true feelings...then maybe it's the same for for the kidnapper" Yukiko began "Maybe what we're seeing is the culprit's intentions."

"Well, it's a possibility…" Yosuke muttered "The killer can throw people into the TV, after all, which means they must have the same power that we do."

"Wait, are you saying the killer is a Persona user?" Yu questioned

"I dunno, maybe" Yosuke shrugged with a sigh "I'm just shooting fish in a barrel here man..."

"So…when the killer things, _I'm gonna attack someone now,_ that's what we see on TV?" Chie questioned

"I don't know about that…" Yosuke muttered "Well, if we're gonna go that far with it, we might as well say that's the basis for that entire world. Like, it's some kinda mix of the minds of the victims and the killer…or maybe it's everyone's minds?"

...

"I think so" Daisuke nodded, gaining everyone's attention "There's something you guys haven't brought up, _we're not the only ones watching the Midnight Channel_"

"Hey yeah! You're right!" Yosuke gasped "In fact, when we brought Kanji here after he was kidnapped, there were two guys over at the other table talking about when they saw him on the Midnight Channel"

"Exactly" Daisuke nodded "These people appear on the Midnight Channel after they appear on TV"

"Not just the TV, _the news_" Yu muttered "And me and my family sit down and watch it every night..."

"And so do most other people" Daisuke added "If Yosuke is right and the Midnight Channel represents everybody's minds then-"

"Those people appear because everyone's thinking about them!" Kou finished

"Yeah, Ms Yamano's affair was publicized, Saki was interviewed about finding the body, the Amagi Inn was shown on TV, me and Kou appeared after the new bullitin on the Basketball team, Kanji was on there after he appeared on the special about gangs"

"And Rise's appeared because of the press conference where she announced she was taking a break from showbiz..." Yukiko muttered

"So if that's the case...that just leaves us with one big question" Yosuke sighed as he pinched the bridge of her nose "Just what the hell _is _the Midnight Channel?"

"I was reading some blog posts the other day about it" Kou stated "Some guy in Sumaru City talked about an incident twelve years ago when rumors started coming true because of something called _The Joker_"

"It could be something like that" Yosuke nodded "I mean...maybe this stuff like this has always been happening..."

"What do you mean?" Yukiko questioned

"Well think about it, who's to say we're the first Persona users? There could be hundreds of them out there" Yosuke informed her "And if there are other Persona users out there, then there's probably been strange stuff happening all over the world and we just haven't noticed..."

"As always, nothing makes sense." Chie sighed before noticing the bleached blond boy across the table had yet to say a single word "Hey Kanji-kun, you still with us? You haven't said a word yet."

"Whaa…?" Kanji questioned as he rubbed his eyes "Uhh…well, um…"

"You weren't sleeping, were you…?" Chie asked

"O-Of course not! I was uh, lost in thought." He defended

"Why would the culprit throw people inside the TV in the first place?" Yukiko asked the group

"They must know by now that people die when they're in there long enough…there's no doubt it's attempted murder." Yosuke noted "So the TV's a good way to do that, because the police can never prove anything about the crime."

"Murder, huh…? So the killer's got a grudge against certain people?" Kanji muttered "Well, there's a shitload of people who've got my number. How 'bout you, Yukiko-senpai? Anyone hate you so bad they'd get rid of you forever?"

"No." She stated immediatly

"Uh, Yukiko…there's always a slight chance and you just don't realize it…" Chie groaned "But if we're trying to a draw a connection between all of the victims, I got nothing..."

"Well, the good thing is, we have another shot at getting ahead of the killer. We can leave the motive aside for now." Yosuke nodded to the group "Once we catch 'em, we'll make 'em talk. The only thing we can be sure of now is that Rise is in danger"

"Wait…we get to do another stakeout!?" Chie asked excitedly

"Hell yeah! This time we'll catch 'em in the act!" Yosuke confirmed

**SHIROKU STORE**

"We gotta do with donuts and milk" Chie told them as the browsed around the store

"You said it. There's no better meal than that for a man on a stakeout." Yosuke nodded "Oh, and throw in some disposable diapers."

"For what!?" Chie spluttered "They don't even sell those here!"

"We have 'em at Junes." Yosuke shrugged

"Too much information!" Chie spat

"You guys finished yet?" Kanji groaned "Let's hurry up and get going."

Yu observed the group before noticing a farmiliar face walking through into the store

"Adachi-san?" Yu questioned "What brings you here?"

"Legwork" Adachi sighed with a shrug "Which is a codeword for babysitting detail...what are you guys doing?"

"We were just about to head over to the tofu shop to see Rise-chan." Yosuke told him

"Oh…I see. I was heading over there too" Adachi nodded before noticing a fellow officer appearing next to him "Oh, Detective Suou"

"Hello" He smiled "I'm just picking up a few odds and ends, I need to stop by Marukyu next"

"It looks like we're all heading to the same place" Adachi smiled

"Two detectives, not bad guys to have around on a stakeout" Chie smiled to the group

**OUTSIDE MARUKYU**

"Don't stop! The culprit might get suspicious!" Yosuke commanded as he and Kanji marched up and down the shopping district

"But we've walked past here like a thousand times already…" Kanji groaned as he practically dragged his feet down the road

"Come on out, you bastard…! We're ready for you…" Adachi growled

"My..." Katsuya mumbled "I've never been on a stakeout before, is it always this tense?"

"Oh…look!" Yukiko shouted, her finger pointing towards a telephone pole where a large, bi-specticaled man with a camera was perched atop

"W-Who's there?!" Adachi cried as the man noted their presence and quickly slid down the pole and waddled off

"Hey, he's running away!" Chie cried out

"Get back here!" Kanji roared as the group began pursuit

"Go, Adachi-san!" Katsuya commanded "If he truly is our man, I'll stay here and guard Rise!"

"Okay!" Adachi nodded before following the group

"S-S-Stop!" The suspicious man cried out as he stopped before a busy road "D-Don't come near me!"

"Shaddup! What kinda idiot would listen to-" Kanji roared

"I-I'll do it, you know! What're you gonna do if I get run over!?" The man spat

"Wh-What…!? N-No!" Adachi cried "If the suspect gets injured, the police will be held responsible…they'll get really angry, and…ummmm."

"I'll do it, I swear!" The suspicious otaku cried "S-So get outta here and stop chasing me!"

"What should we do?" Yosuke asked Yu

"I'll tell you what!" Kanji roared as he grabbed the man and wrapped his arm around his neck

"Kanji-kun!" Yukiko gasped as the mans face turned blue

"Relax, I know what I'm doing" Kanji shrugged "I watch a lot of MMA"

"Geez..." Daisuke sighed, however a strange sensation overcame him and he twisted his head to the left, spotting a boy with a mass of red hair and a green shirt walking down the street next to them "That guy again..."

"Huh?" Kou questioned

"He's...wait, where'd he go?" Daisuke questioned, looking down the street and failing to spot the boy "The Hell?"

"Something wrong?" Chie asked

...

"No" Daisuke said with a shake of his head

**A FEW MINUTES LATER**

"H-How dare you assault an ordinary civilian like me!" The man cried

"Shut the hell up, murderer!" Kanji snapped We're taking your punk ass in!"

"Wha-!? Time out! What do you mean, _murderer_!?" He cried

"It's no use playing dumb!" Chie snapped

"W-Wait a second!" The man pleaded "I just really like Risette, so I wanted to take a peek in her room…look, see! All I've got on me is a bunch of cameras!"

"Yep, you're the culprit, all right. No two ways about it." Adachi nodded before slapping a pair of handcuffs on the man "All right kids, I'll take it from here. We'll hear your story down at the station…ohh, how I've waited to use that line!"

"P-Please! Let me go! I didn't do anything wrong!" The man pleaded as Adachi dragged him away "I-I know for a fact it's not a crime in this country to take secret pictures!"

"...Yes it is!" Adachi shouted "Don't you get it?! You're a suspect in a murder investigation! Hey, thanks for your help guys!"

"Oh...no problem" Yosuke said with a wave

"But you really should stop getting involved with this stuff. It's dangerous. I know Dojima-san was worried sick." Adachi stated before he finally departed "C'mon you, let's go!"

...

"Is it… really over?" Yosuke mumbled

"Rest is up to the cops…" Kanji nodded

"Looks like the killer was a pervert, just like we thought." Chie sighed before perking up "Wait… Does this mean the case is closed? Seriously!? Awesome!"

"Something's not right here..." Daisuke muttered "If the killer was really just stalking out the victims homes then we should've spotted him when we searched out Kanji's place, that guy sticks out like a sore thu-"

"Oh give it a rest!" Kou groaned "It's over man! We saved the town!"

_"And now that it's all done...I'll tell Chie how I feel"_

...

"Let's go see Rise..." Daisuke said "If she's safe then I'll know for sure"

"Yeah, let's go!" Yosuke nodded as the group took off, sans Daisuke and Yu

"Something wrong, Narukami?" Daisuke questioned

"It can't be...this easy" Yu mumbled

"You think so too?!" Daisuke asked

"Something's wrong, that guy was a obsessed fan but he didn't look like a killer..." Yu nodded "Come on, let's go"

**OUTSIDE MARUKYU**

"Oh hello" Rise's grandmother smiled as the group approached the store which was still guarded by Katsuya "Would you like some Tofu?"

"Oh...umm" Yosuke mumbled

"Oh, did you come to see Rise?" She questioned "She seems to have gone out, unfortunately…"

"What?!" Katsuya questioned "Impossible, she didn't leave!"

"Oh, that's odd" Rise grandmother mumbled "She must've slipped out a window or something, sometime's she'll just wander out without a word…you must forgive her. She's quite worn out, in many ways."

"She left… without saying anything?" Yosuke questioned

"Why would she leave through a window?" Katsuya questioned

"She left without saying anything…?" Yukiko muttered "Could that mean...?"

"Shouldn't we look for her!? She can't have gone far." Yosuke suggested

"I knew it couldn't be this easy..." Daisuke groaned

"Come on!" Chie stated as the group split up

* * *

"Yo, it's me. I'm on the way" Sho stated through the phone "I'm getting a bus there"

_"Execellent, meet me there and be make sure not to fail" _

"This is going to be a real pain in the ass" Sho groaned

_"I'm sure you can handle it..."_

"I-"

_*click*_

"He hung up on me!" Sho cried "Prick!"

**A FEW HOURS LATER**

"I can't find her anywhere" Chie sighed as they regrouped in front of Marukyu

"None of the neighbors have seen her…" Yukiko noted

"Maybe we're just not looking in the right places…but where could she have gone?" Chie questioned

"Dammit, this can't be good. I hope I'm wrong…" Yosuke sighed

"Well, we did everything we can. No use griping about it." Kanji groaned

...

"That detective..." Kou muttered

"Huh?" Daisuke questioned

"That detective...Katsuya?" Kou mumbled "He was right there and now Rise's missing..."

"Yeah..." Yosuke nodded "Come to think of it, he's not native to Inaba, they say he was transferred here..."

"You think...he's..." Chie began

"He did stay behind while we all chased after that man" Yukiko nodded

"This...Katsuya guy" Yu mumbled "I'll see if I can get something out of Uncle about him"

"That's all we can do..." Yosuke sighed "It's raining tonight..."

"All we can do is wait and watch" Kanji shrugged

* * *

"I don't understand, there was no one there..." Katsuya muttered

_"It is peculiar" Mitsuru's voice rang "You say you were there the whole time?"_

"Yes, not once did I leave the front door" Katsuya nodded "And...I'm no doubt under suspicion for that"

_"You believe they'll think you're a suspect?" _

"The Persona users here will no doubt think I'm responsible, I'm a mysterious stranger in their town who was practically left alone with a girl who just disappeared"

_"What do you believe is the best course of action?" Mitsuru asked_

...

"I believe I may have to prove myself to them" He stated

_"You mean..."_

"Yes Ma'am" He nodded "With...your permission of course"

_"If you believe it is best"_

"Yes...I firmly believe so"

* * *

"Then it's in your hands" Mitsuru stated as she hung up her phone and stepped outside of her limo and into the Airport

"Does he require help?" Came a voice before she left

"No, he has it under control" She said with a shake of her head "But it's time for him to become officially involved"

"I see, understood"

"If he says he doesn't need our help then I believe him..." Mitsuru said to her guest

"If you have place faith in him then so shall I"

"Very well then" Mitsuru nodded "It was nice of you to accompany, Aigis. But you should be getting back"

"Of course" the robotic girl nodded as the limo began to drive away, though the instant she left, Mitsuru's phone rang once again

"Yes? Wh-" Mitsuru began then stopped and gasped in shock "What?! Hijacked?!"

_"Yes Ma'am, I don't know the exact details but several armed men stormed the plane!"_

"Have they been dealt with?" Mitsuru questioned

_"No Ma'am" He confirmed_

"Hold on" Mitsuru commanded as she hung up and dialed another number "Kikuno, turn the limo around and bring Aigis back!"

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Katsuya Suou?" Dojima questioned "Why would you want to talk about him?"

"I ran into him today, he seemed..." Yu struggled to find a word

"I can't really find the words for him either" Dojima sighed "He's a detective from Sumaru City, he has a younger brother, but apart from that, I don't know much...no, wait...If I recall, he requested the transfer here"

"He requested it?" Yu questioned

"Yeah, and his higher ups really praised him" Dojima nodded "Said he was a top notch detective, perfectly suited for this case...why do you ask"?

"I'm just curious is all..." Yu said as he took off up the stairs

"What's going on with him..." Dojima mumbled to himself

_"Now back to our main story" The news anchor spoke "the hijacking occurred at approximately 4pm this afternoon, there are no known causalities and three suspects have been captured though a fourth was reportedly seen fleeing from the scene. The three captured suspects have been taken into custody, yet claim to have no memory of the event"_

**YU'S ROOM/ MIDNIGHT**

"Maru-Q! Push Risette!"

"HOLY SHIT!" Yu shouted

_"Keep it down in there!"_ Dojima called

The TV opened to up to a vivid image, what looked like the interior of a strip club and in focus was the young girl, dressed in a yellow bikini

"Good evening, good evening! I'm Rise Kujikawa! This spring, one young girl levels up to become a high school idol…yayyy!" The girl called happily as the camera zoomed in on her chest "So today, I'm gonna celebrate by pushing the limits of Standards &amp; Practices! Does everybody know what time it is? Showtime!

Show what, huh? Hmhmhm…

E-very-thing!"

"You have a girlfriend, control yourself" Yu mumbled as his thumb glided over the record button

"Eee, how embarrassing! Is this too hot for TV!? Well, if a thing is worth doing, it's worth doing all the way! I'm gonna bare it all for you! Heehee! Stay tuned!"

And with that, the image disappeared and his phone rang

"Hel-"

_"DUUUUUUUUUDE!" Yosuke yelled "DUDE! DUDE! DUDE! DUUUUUUUDE!"_

"Uh...yeah?" Yu questioned

_"I-Is she serious about baring it all!?" Yosuke cried out "Is it me, or all these shows getting crazier and crazier!?"_

"You sound happy..." Yu muttered

_"Huh? N-No, not at all...I...I...crap! I recorded the other channel by accident!"_

"..."

_"I-I mean...her Shadow self is gonna do whatever it wants again." Yosuke said "But man…we couldn't prevent the kidnapping this time either, even when we knew who the target would be._

_Those detectives from this afternoon were no help at all. I guess we'll have to do everything ourselves…"_

**JUNE 24/ TV WORLD**

"Hey, Teddie, you okay?" Chie questioned the bear who had his back turned to the group

"I wasn't crying!" The bear defended "Everyone was having fun out there. You forgot all about me…I was abandoned."

"No, we would never do that!" Chie cried

"I'm sorry…were you lonely?" Yukiko apologized

"I was bored. It made me all listless. I'm a useless bear. I don't even know what I am." Teddie mumbled "I couldn't figure it out…no one would come visit me…then I thought I heard voices coming from your world. They were all having so much fun…I was so lonely that I tried to cry. But I couldn't…"

"Well, you are hollow inside…" Yosuke shrugged

"Shut up! Stop saying I'm hollow!" The bear snapped

"Don't snap at me! This is your world, isn't it!?" Yosuke shouted back "You're the one who said you just want to live here peacefully, and made us promise to find the culprit!"

"C'mon, I'm sure Teddie's just tired from thinking so much, right?" Chie suggested

"When I'm alone, I overthing things and feel even lonelier..." Teddie sighed "I was so sad that my chest would burst and cotton would fly out…Chie-chan, Yuki-chan, can I try scoring with you two someday?"

"Huh?" Kou questioned

"Can we please drop the whole _scoring_ thing…?" Yukiko groaned

"Anyways, we wanted to ask you something!" Yosuke cut in "How's it been over here? Did a girl called Rise Kujikawa show up? Can you sense anything?"

"Rise Kujikawa? Hm…?" Teddie pondered

"You can't tell…? Your nose is kinda losing its edge lately, huh?" Yosuke asked

"I'm a pretty shabby bear…soon, I won't be useful at all. Then I'll get thrown away…" Teddie said quietly

"That's not true" Yu denied "We wouldn't do that, not ever. I don't know why you think you're alone, when we're all here for you"

"I can…stay with you all?" Teddie asked

"Okay. Then we'll go look for something that'll help you search, like last time." Chie nodded

"I can't tell for sure. But I can kinda sense someone in here…I think I'll be able to find her. I just need some kind of hint." Teddie told them

"We'll try our best" Yu smiled

"Thank you beary much. You're really kind, Sensei…" Teddie smiled back "I'll try even harder from now on!"

**YASO-INABA HIGH**

"You got info?" Yosuke questioned as he and Daisuke walked down the hall of their school

"Dude in my class is obsessed with Risette" Daisuke confirmed "I'll try and ask him"

* * *

"Well that was no help" Yosuke groaned as the two exited the classroom

"That...was disturbing" Daisuke gurgled "So many figurines in so many compromising positions..."

**OUTSIDE MARUKYU**

"Oh, you're the boy from yesterday, looking for Rise?" Rise's grandmother questioned Yu

"Yes Ma'am, I'm concerned" Yu told her

"Sometimes she leaves the house without telling me…I hope she's okay…" Her grandmother sighed "I've heard that some person with a camera has been wandering around recently.

I think that person was called a _papa rat_ or something…the people in this district try their best to get rid of that person, but he just keeps coming back…I heard that he's often at the riverbank."

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"There's no one here, bro" Yosuke sighed into the phone

_"If he's not there then he's not anywhere..." Yu sighed "There's no point of dragging this out, we'll just have to look again tomorrow_"

"Got it" Yosuke nodded as he hung up

"Oh, Senpai?"

"Huh? Oh, Ayane" Yosuke noted his fellow band member at the riverbank "What're you doing here?"

"This is where I usually practice." She stated "There's never anyone around, so I can relax while I play."

"Well that is a good point" He noted

"Why are you here Senpai?" Ayane questioned

"Oh...no reason" Yosuke lied

"I'm actually glad you're here" Ayane smiled "I wanted to thank you"

"Oh...me? Why?" Yosuke asked

"For as long as I can remember, I've never expressed my opinions. I've let them just build up inside me. I was trying to protect myself from conflicts by just avoiding them. But sometimes arguing about something and talking through it is what makes a relationship stronger, I think I'm finally starting to see that." Ayane explained "Well, no, that's not true. I've known that all along. But I was too scared to admit it...I was afraid of speaking my mind and getting shot down. I didn't want anyone to hate me."

"What...are you saying?" Yosuke questioned

"That's why I thought I could avoid getting hurt by just going with the flow...It was the easiest way out. But...then you came along...and made me realize I was just pretending not to see what I was doing. I've been keeping a lot of...unpleasant emotions buried inside. In fact, the real me can be pretty selfish." Ayane explained "I want people to notice me, but I never make the first move. Selfish, right?...That's me. I feel guilty...But you helped me do a lot of things I couldn't have done on my own. I pushed myself past my limits, and on top of that, I got to hang out with someone I really care about. But most importantly, you made me look myself in the eye. I never could have done that alone. You helped me hear my own voice."

...

"So, from now on, I'm not gonna pretend that I don't care what happens anymore! I'll express my opinion, say what I think, and if that gets me on someone's bad side, then that's that. If I wanna get what I want in life, I've gotta speak my mind! I owe it all to you, Yosuke-senpai... Thank you!"

...

"Wow...I had no idea I helped you like that" Yosuke admitted

"Um...there's something else" Ayane admitted with a blush "Senpai...I...I...lo..."

...

_"Oh no..." Yosuke muttered to himself_

"Ayane"

"Y-Yes?" Ayane questioned

"I'm...sorry" Yosuke sighed "I...there was someone I liked a while back...but...things happened and...I...I'm sorry, I...don't feel that way about you and even If I did...I'm just not ready for a relationship so soon after Saki..."

...

"Ayane..."

"I-I should get home!" The little girl stated before she scampered away

"Ayane!" Yosuke called out but the girl had already ran off

"Wow..." Came a voice from behind him

"Daisuke?" Yosuke questioned

"That...was rough, man" Daisuke said

"What was I supposed to do?" Yosuke groaned

"You were honest with her, it was the right thing to do" Daisuke explained to him "It seemed harsh but one day she'll be thankful for it..."

"Then why do I feel like a piece of shit?" Yosuke sighed

"Yeah, that's the downside" Daisuke groaned "Sometimes what's best isn't always what's nice"

"Damn..." Yosuke grumbled "Suppose I'm leaving the band..."

"Oh no no no no, trust me, don't avoid it" Daisuke warned "That's what happened to me, man"

"Oh great" Yosuke sighed

"Come on, I'll treat you to some Aiya, get your mind off it" Daisuke stated as he slung his arm over Yosuke's shoulder

**JUNE 25/ UNKNOWN LOCATION**

"No casualties, no demands...and they claim they don't remember a single second of the hijacking, what the hell?" Mitsuru mumbled as she read through the report "I don't understand, why hijack a plane for the sake of just...making it on the news?"

"There was the...theft of some certain cargo ma'am" the purple haired maid Kikuno explained "_The _cargo, ma'am"

...

"I see..." Mitsuru mumbled

"Ma'am...forgive me if I'm out of line here, but..." Kikuno began "What...exactly was this cargo?"

"I don't know" Mitsuru stated "It's been locked away for years, even I'm in the dark. But I can manage a very good guess"

"Then...why transport it?" Kikuno asked "I'm sorry, that was out of li-"

"No, it's fine" Mitsuru waved her off "In all honesty, curiosity"

"Ma'am?" Kikuno questioned

"We were going to take it to a discreet location and open it" Mitsuru explained "There was no telling what it would do when awakened...so we figured a remote location would suffice, it could be done away with if it rebelled"

"Ma'am, the way you speak of this cargo...you speak as it was...alive" Kikuno muttered

...

"The container is marked Unit #31, Generation Five...doesn't take a genius to figure it out..." Mitsuru sighed "And if this is the only thing taken...then I can harbor that our hijacker too, knew the contents..."

"So you're stating this hijacking was for the sole purpose of abducting this cargo..." Kikuno summed it up

"Yes...and if the three captured claim to have no memories of the event...then our escaped fourth suspect may have implanted some kind of control upon them...something like that is..." Mitsuru nodded "Kikuno..."

"Yes?"

"Get me the list of Shuji Ikutsuki's experimentation's" Mitsuru demanded

...

"Understood Ma'am" Kikuno nodded before departing

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"You want to know about Rise?" The paparazzi asked

"Yes" Yu nodded

"Well how about this? Why don't we exchange information? You tell me what you know, I'll tell you what I know". The paparazzi offered

"She's a completely different person in real life" Yu revealed "She's very quiet, somewhat humble"

"Hmm, as I thought." The paparazzi nodded "To be honest, I used to do a little digging into Risette's private life. I was surprised to discover she's totally different than on TV. You'd never recognize her in real life. Honestly, though, when you think of an idol you should honestly just assume _manufactured personality_,too...you got anything else"

"She's stressed" Yu added

"She's stressed, huh…? I guess that's what it is, then…" The paparazzi sighed "You see, I've been trying to find the reason behind the shocking hiatus. And the most convincing thing I heard so far was that _Risette_ got tired of her made-up personality. Her identity as an idol, as opposed to how she normally is…she couldn't stand living two lives anymore…that sounds about right. Well, you didn't give me anything new, but thanks for the information. I can at least turn this into something…"

"She was tired of living two lives..." Yu mumbled

**TV WORLD**

"Hmhm…her real self…" Teddie muttered about the information Yu fed him "I see…she's just like me. The delicate, sentimental type. Then…hrmmm…Whaah!? There's something out there! Is this it? Did I find her!? Follow me!"

**MARUKYU STRIPTEASE**

"What is this place?" Chie questioned as the group walked into a near pitch black area, which was soon illuminated by various lights "Whoa!"

"Whoa!" Yosuke observed "Is this the kinda place you find in resort towns?"

"Oh, I think you're right." Yukiko nodded before her face turned red "Oh! B-But we don't have one…our inn is not like that…!"

"Huh. So this is a strip joint, eh?" Kanji noted

"Strip!?" Teddie cried out "Aha! I know what that is! It's the thing zebras have, right!?

…

Strip… Like a zebra, right!? Right!?"

"It's so bring here…even with the glasses on, my eyes hurt." Yukiko mumbled

"Doesn't anyone get the joke!? Okay, let's try one more time…" Teddie began again "Strip…It's something zebras have…"

"Can anyone shut this thing up!?" Chie requested

"Huh? Zebra…? Sorry, what're we talking about?" Yukiko asked

"I-I won't say it again…let's hurry on…" Teddie sighed

"Let's save her" Daisuke nodded "With seven of us, this should take too long"

**FLOOR 5**

"Hey guys!" Kou shouted as the group stormed the floor and saw a Bikini-clad girl in front of them "It's Rise!"

"But something's not right…" Chie noted

"It must be her other self…" Yukiko agreed

"Hello, all you fans out there! Thanks for coming today!" _Rise _smiled "Today, you're gonna see every last inch of me! What's that? You don't believe me? Ahahah! Okay, okay! Then why don't we-Oh, but you won't be able to see with all this smoke, huh?"

The smoke filled room proceeded to clear up, fully exposing the yellow bikini wearing girl to the group

"Okie-dokie! Just follow me a little further in and I'll prove that I'm every bit as good as my word!"

**MARU-Q MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM SPECIAL!**

**LIVE! HOT!**

**RISETTE NAKED AS THE DAY SHE WAS BORN, LIVE AND FULLY EXPOSED!**

"Please, for the love of god, do not tell me I was like that!" Kanji cried

"Oh you got to be kidding me" Chie gurgled as the familiar voices from those watching the Midnight Channel sounded out "Are people honestly enjoying this?!"

"ll right, Risetteers! Don't touch that dial! When we come back, you'll get a good, long look at the real me! Maru-Q!" _Rise _giggled before scampering off

"W-We'd better move it! This is a thousand times worse than just hearing a few nasty secrets!" Yosuke stated

"The Shadows are really getting aggravated!" Teddie shook "What we just saw is what that Rise girl is suppressing! She'll be in trouble at this rate!"

"Alright, let's hurry up and go!" Kanji roared

"Yeah!" Kou roared as the group began to take off but noted one was not following "Daisuke?"

"G...Give me a minute" Daisuke muttered as he squatted down

**FLOOR 11/ THE BARE TRUTH**

"There they are!" Chie cried out as the Investigation Team ran into a room containing a large pole and the two Rise's

"Look, the real one's here too!" Yosuke pointed out

"**Aaahahahahaha! They're all watching! All eyes are on me now!**" The Shadow laughed

"Stop it!" Rise demanded

"**Awwww! What's the matter? You wanna show your stuff, don'tcha?**" Shadow Rise laughed before gently tugging the sides of the Bikini bottoms down slightly "**How's this!?**"

"Please…stop this…" Rise muttered

"**Oooh, she wants me to stop. That's so funny!**" Shadow Rise laughed "**As if that's even close to what you're really thinking, you little skank! You want everyone to see you! You want them to look at you! I know this because you're me! And obviously, I'm you!**"

"No…that's not true…" Rise tried to defend

"**Ahahahahah! C'mon, look! You can't tear your eyes away! This is me! This is who I really am! Not Risette, the fake celebrity! Look at the girl right in front of you!**" The Shadow spat before hanging seductively off the pole "**I'm sick of being some airhead cliché who chokes down everything she's fed and takes it all with a smile! **_**Risette**_**? ****Who the hell is she? There's no such person in this world! I'm no one but myself! C'mon, look at me!**"

"That's not-I…!" Rise tried to find the words

"**Well then, I guess it's time to prove it. I'm gonna show it all off!**" Shadow Rise laughed as one the bikini straps dripped down her shoulder "**Let my naked truth be burned into your brains!**"

"Stop...stop it!" Rise screamed "You're..."

"No! Don't say it!" Chie tried to warn

"You're not me!"

...

"Ah hell..." Yosuke sighed

"**Heehee, ahaha! Aaahahahahaha!**" Shadow Rise laughed before she started to transform "**Here it comes! Now, I'm finally myself!**"

"Here we go!" Kanji announced

Shadow Rise's form shifted until it was large inhuman multicolored being handing upside down on the pole with a Radar dish in-place of a face

"**I am a Shadow, the true self. ****And now, the moment you've been waiting for! It's time for me to show you every last inch of myself! Heehee… And for our guests in the front row…I'll give you extra-special, extra-intense service!**"

"So I was like this too…? Oh man…" Kanji gurgled

"**Ohhh? You're going to rush the stage? What an ill-mannered guest…Maybe you're looking for an experience that's a little more intense!?**"

"W-What's going on?!" Kanji called out as green box surrounded the group and appeared to scan them

"Enough of this, Fujin!" Daisuke called out as his Persona went to attack but then discovered... "It...missed?!"

"Izanagi!" Yu called out but his attack too, failed to connect "What is this?"

"What's the deal here!?" Chie cried "Our attacks keep missing!"

"Damn, it's like it's anticipating our every move…" Yosuke grunted

"I-I'm completely useless…" Teddie muttered

"What the-!?" Yosuke cried out as the box appeared again

"That power…I think it's scanning us! Ohh, this is not good!" Teddie cried

"When you say _not good_, what exactly does that mean!?" Kanji questioned

"**Woohoo…! Analysis complete! Okay, here comes my counterattack! See if you can dodge, hmm?**" Shadow Rise laughed

"S-Stop it!" Teddie cried out as the entire group was blasted back

"You...gotta be kidding me..." Yosuke grumbled as he attempted to pick himself up

"How're we supposed to win…!?" Chie shouted

"A-Are we…going to die…?" Yukiko asked

"No! You guys can't die!" Teddie cried"What can I do…? Sensei…"

"Teddie..." Yu muttered

"There must be something… Something I can do…" Teddie panicked "Am I going to be all alone again…? No… That's not what I want!"

"Shit! It's winding up again…!" Kanji groaned

"I… I…" Teddie squeaked

"**Okie dokie, here we go again!**" Shadow Rise laughed"**Goodbye…forever!**"

"Aw shit…It's coming!" Kanji groaned

"What...what can I do..." Teddie muttered, defeated

"**HYPERION!**"

"Wha-!" Teddie cried out as an unfamiliar Persona flew past his head

"Hey, isn't that-" Chie noted

"That's that detective" Yosuke pointed out

"Katsuya Suou..." Yu muttered

"**What the-Who're you?!**" Shadow Rise roared

"My name is Katsuya Suou" He stated as he pushed up his glasses "Now Hyperion! Heat Kaiser!"

"**WHAT THE FU-**" The shadow roared before it was completely blown away in one blast

"What...the hell?" Kanji cursed as he pulled himself up "This whole time...that dude had a Persona?"

"Don't just stand there, check she's okay!" Katsuya stated to group

"R-Right!" Yosuke nodded as the group ran over to Rise

"Rise-chan!" Yukiko called out

"Mm…? Where…am I…?" Rise questioned as she pulled herself up, noticing the group "I'm sorry…this's all my fault…"

"You're okay, that's all that matters" Yu stated as he and Yukiko helped Rise to her feet

"Really…? Thank God…" Rise sighed before noticing her Shadow self before her "I'm sorry…you must've been in a lot of pain up to now. You're part of me, but I kept refusing to admit you existed…I was trying to figure out who the real me was. But I realize now that I was on the wrong track. There is no _real_ me. It just doesn't exist.

You…me…even Risette…They were all born from me. All of them are…me."

The Shadow nodded and proceeded to transform

_Rise has faced her other self, she has obtained the facade used to overcome life's hardships, the Persona; Himiko_

"Rise-chan! Careful!" Yosuke cried out as the girl began to stumbled

"I'm all right…" She nodded before finallt noticing the boy "Hey, you're the one who came to the store, right…?"

"Oh, yeah. And these guys came with me." Yosuke nodded

"I thought I recognized you guys…thanks, everyone…" Rise smiled

"We'll explain everything later, but for right now-" Chie muttered

"What's wrong, Chie?" Yukiko asked

"We have some questions..." Yu stated as he turned around and came face to face with the detective

"Yes, I suppose you do" Katsuya sighed

"All this time, you were a Persona user, just like us?" Kou questioned

"Indeed" Katsuya nodded "I obtained my Persona many years ago, when you were lot were barely out of kindergarden"

"Who are you?" Yosuke questioned

"I'm exactly who I say I am, Katsuya Suou, 36 years old, homicide detective from Sumaru City" Katsuya stated "I never said I wasn't a Persona user, you just never asked"

"Bastard" Kanji spat "You knew this shit was going on and you did nothing?!"

"No...I tried to protect Rise but somehow she was still kidnapped" Katsuya confirmed "I don't know how she managed to disappear while I was guarding the store"

"To be honest...we started to suspect you" Yu informed him

"I'm aware" Katsuya said with a small chuckle "Hence the reason I came here, to prove to you that I _am _on your side..."

...

"How did you know about this?" Yu asked next "How did you find out about the Midnight Channel?"

"One of my associates discovered the Midnight Channel when...he fell asleep on the train and ended up in Inaba" Katsuya sighed

"Associate?" Yosuke questioned "You mean...there are more of you guys?"

"Indeed" Katsuya confirmed "You're not the only Persona users in the world"

"To be honest, we started to think as much" Yosuke admitted "But how-"

"Look, I'd love to continue this, but let's do this after we get this girl out of here" Katsuya suggested

"O-Oh, yeah!" Yosuke nodded

* * *

"Are you feeling okay, Rise-chan?" Yukiko asked "We're almost outside"

"I'm alright" She nodded

"I felt...so useless..." Teddie mumbled sadly

"Teddie?" Yu questioned

"I wanna be alone for a while." Teddie sighed

"H-Hey…" Yosuke muttered in concern

"I was no help…my nose hasn't been working too well either…" Teddie groaned before a determined look appeared on his face and the bear began to do push-ups "So I'm gonna train hard! Nobody can stop moi! Here goes! Huh!"

"Wh-What's gotten into you…?" Yosuke questioned

"Don't, talk, to me, please!" Teddie said inbetween push-ups "One more set! Huh! Huh Another one! Huh! Huh!"

"Leave the dude be…" Kanji instructed the group "'Comes a time when a man's gotta stand on his own two feet."

"Uh, I'm not sure this is really one of those times…" Chie groaned

"Well then, Chie and I will take Rise-chan home." Yukiko stated

"Very well then, until we meet again" Katsuya nodded

"H-Hey!" Yosuke snapped "What about those answers?"

"I'll give them to you when you are all together and healthy" Katsuya stated "I guarantee I will answer all your questions, but only after you've all recovered"

"How can be know for sure?" Daisuke questioned

"I'll call you" Katsuya said, and with that, he exited the TV World

"He's..." Yosuke groaned but then sighed "She'll need a lot of rest. We can talk after she regains her strength.

...

Well, um… Good luck, Teddie!"

"Just kick back and wait for my wonderful comeback! Peace out!" Teddie cried

"I respect your determination" Yu said with a salute

**GAS STATION **

"Well shit, that was a pain in the ass" Sho growled

"It was successful" The attendant informed him "Now, it's almost time..."

"So...how long before it's thrown in the TV?" Sho questioned

"Perhaps...soon" The attendant muttered "Who can say?"

"Uh, hello?" Sho scoffed "Why do you stick to that Midnight Channel bullshit anyway? Just throw everyone in there..."

...

"You seem to misunderstand" The Attendant spoke "I am not the one throwing people into the TV"

"You're not!?" Sho spat "Well then who the fuck is then?!"

And then, the attendant spoke a name

...

"I literally have no clue who that is" Sho stated

"Very well then..." The attendant sighed before Sho stood up "Where are you going?"

"Out" Sho grunted

"With your swords?" The attendant questioned

"Yeah, why?" Sho smiled "Is that a problem?"

...

"Not at all" The attendant said as Sho departed

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Whoa, there! Careful now, Dojima-san." Adachi's voice rang out from the doorway

"Ow!" Dojima slurred "Dammit…! Who put a shtep here!?"

"Oh hell..." Motoko muttered

"That'd be the carpenters, Sir. C'mon, don't take your anger out on the house. That won't solve anything." Adachi stated as they appeared in the room

"Whooo… I'm hooome. Nanako! I'm baaack!" Dojima cried out

"W-Welcome back…" Nanako muttered

"Oh, hi Nanako-chan. Sorry, but could you go get his futon ready?" Adachi asked before the girl left to do just that "Phew! I think he had a little too much to drink, haha."

"How else… *hic *… am I supposed to deal with this crap!?" Dojima roared as Adachi planted him on the couch "Friggin' fancy-talkin' kid…I've…I've been in this line'a work…since you were all learnin' yer times tables!"

"The prefectural police sent in special investigational support." Adachi told Yu "'Cause you know, we haven't really made any progress on the serial murders since they started in April…haha. So this "special support" is supposedly a hot-shot detective from a well-known private agency…you shoulda seen the look on my face when I met him, he's no older than you!"

_"So he's not talking about Katsuya..." Yu noted_

"Honestly Ryotaro" Motoko growled "Going out and getting drunk, at your age!"

"Bleh!" Dojima spat "Besides, you're older than me!"

"Yes, but I don't get plastered after my shift at Junes is over!" Motoko snapped

"So this detective" Yu said firmly, trying to change the subject

"Awww, he's a brat like any other. Ain't nothin' he can do to help. *hic *" Dojima grumbled "He goes on and on about deductions and… deductions… Heh. Ace or no ace, the prefeckshure oughtta be more careful about giving us brats to babysit…Condes…Condescendin' bashtards… *hic *"

"The kid said, as long as he can be of assistance in solving a difficult case, he won't require a reward. Well, you can imagine the shine the higher-ups took to him after that. So we can't exactly turn him down…" Adachi explained

"Adachi!" Dojima snapped

"Gah, sorry! Me and my big mouth…" Adachi panicked

"You run your jaw like this is all shome kinda joke…" Dojima groaned "It's your fault to begin with, for jumping the gun and hauling in that Peeping Tom!"

"Oh…haha, um…" Adachi sweated

"And you!"

"Me?" Yu questioned

"You'cn take your share of the blame, too…" Dojima mumbled "Always wandering around crime scenes whenever somethin' happens…"

"His futon's ready." Nanako stated as she re-entered the room

"Alright, Dojima-san, up and at 'em. Nanako-chan got your futon all ready for you!" Adachi stated

"Nnh… Mmmm…" Dojima mumbled before keeling over on the couch

...

"Honestly" Motoko sighed "Oh well, since he's taken my bed, I might as well take his"

...

"Sure does stink of Sake in here..." Nanako sighed

* * *

So a big change happened here, I cut out a pretty big moment for Teddie. some of you are no doubt upset about it, well...don't worry

Teddie's moment _**WILL **_be coming a later date, I assure you

So the Marukyu Striptease part was just covered, here's a fun fact for you. I was dragged to a Stripclub on my friend's 22nd birthday. It was the most awkward hour of my life and I'm pretty sure I left with an STD

...

ANYWAY

So you may've noticed at beginning, the characters noted how Yu's hair had gotten longer. Back in the end of Chapter 5, Yu had a small line about growing out his hair and he's lived up to it. With it having been over a month in-universe since he decided to grow it out and for the sake of a visual comparison; Yu now has the hairstyle of Kadaj from Final Fantasy VII Advent Children. It may be a bit out there but I think it's believable for a month of growth.

Also, fun fact; Kadaj's Japanese voice actor is Showtaro Morikubo, who is also the Japanese voice of Yosuke

COINCIDENCE?!

...

Well...yes


	9. Trapped in a Maze of Relationships

**TRAPPED IN A MAZE OF RELATIONSHIPS**

**JUNE 26/ YU'S ROOM**

"Hmmmm, it's pretty clean." Yosuke hummed as he inspected the room, before slyly smiling to Yu "So…? You keep the goods under your futon?"

"Huh?" Yu questioned "What do you mean?"

"Aw come on, man!" Yosuke laughed as he slung his arm over Yu "You can tell me! Even if it's the freaky stuff, I promise, I won't blab to the others!"

"I don't keep porn in my room..." Yu groaned

"Hahaha! Why are you acting so dignified about it?" Yosuke laughed "Alright, I'll check 'em out when you go take a piss or something. I'll expose your embarrassing tastes!"

"I don't have any embarrassing tastes!" Yu defended

"So..." Yosuke smirked "You ever had a girl up here?"

"W-What?!" Yu spat, the answer was yes of course, he had brought Chie up here once, not that Yosuke needed to know that "No..."

"Ah, so you're a celebate kinda guy" Yosuke laughed

"Are you up there?" Came Nanako's voice from behind the door "Have you seen the public notice anywhere?"

"Nanako-chan's here? Let's let her in." Yosuke suggest before Yu opened the door for her "Nanako-chan, are you free today?"

"No, I'm going to Takeyoshi-kun's house with Miwa-chan and Yo-chan." She said with a shake of her head

"A-A guy's house!?" Yosuke stuttered

"Takeyoshi-kun sits next to me. I'm going to deliver the class notice to him." Nanko explained "Miwa-chan said she's going with me because she likes Takeyoshi-kun."

"Because she likes him…? M-Man, kids sure are mature these days…" Yosuke muttered "Well, my first love was in kindergarten, too! I've always been ahead of my time. But, well… I don't really need that in my life right now."

"Yeah, I heard from Daisuke..." Yu muttered

"Oh god, does everyone know about the Ayane incident?" Yosuke groaned "I just have...things to do before I set it right"

...

"Like...homework?" Nanako asked

"No...well...maybe it is, yeah" Yosuke chuckled "You're pretty smart Nanako-chan!"

"Oh, is that the time? I have to go now, bye!" The little girl waved as she departed

"Catching the killer, ending the murders, bringing peace to the town…only we can do it, huh?" Yosuke sighed before turning to you "Let's hang in there. I'm counting on you."

...

Yu didn't respond

"Hey, you okay?"

"Nanako's going to a boys house..." Yu muttered as he stared at the doorway

"Oh...you've turned into a real protective big brother, huh?" Yosuke laughed "I'm surprised, y'know...since you have an illegitimate sib-...I'm sorry, that was out of line"

"It's okay" Yu waved it off

...

"Hey...not to treat to places you don't want to go...but..." Yosuke trailed "Do you...know anything...about your...you know?"

"Barely" Yu sighed "They should be about a year younger than me, but in all honesty, that's all I know. Probably all I'll ever know"

"I'm sorry for bringing it up" Yosuke sighed

"I told you, it's okay" Yu smiled "It's nice to open up once in a while"

"Yeah..." Yosuke nodded before looking dead at Yu "Hey...can we go somewhere?"

"You barge into my room and now you want to drag me out?" Yu questioned

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"There's something I wanted to tell you." Yosuke told him with a solemn look on his face "Somewhere deep down...I didn't trust you. No, it's more like...I was jealous of you. I thought you were like me. Coming from the city to the countryside, I thought you'd be bored out of your mind here. But as soon as you got here, you called your Persona...became our leader, gathered people...you're a hero. I like you for that, and I'm proud of you...but I guess I was jealous at the same time."

"Why...would you be jealous of me?" Yu questioned

"When I called you _special_, I thought some more about it." Yosuke explained "I started to think of you as a cool older brother, but then I realized, that would make me your weaker, dumb younger brother...I don't want to you to think of me like that, _I_ don't wantto think of myself like that...I think of everyone, I wanted to be acknowledged by you the most...so...I want you to hit me!"

"You want me to what?!" Yu coughed

"Give me a good one. Knock out all this crap inside of me." Yosuke demanded "I want to be equal with you. I want us to stand shoulder-to-shoulder. So c'mon..."

"You...think me punching you will make us equal?" Yu questioned

"I know it sounds stupid" Yosuke grumbled "But..."

"Then hit me too" Yu stated as he raised his fists

"What?!" Yosuke questioned "But I don't have a reason to hit you!"

"If we're really equal, then you don't need one" Yu explained

...

"Yeah" Yosuke smiled as he readied his fists "Okay, here I come! Take your best shot!"

* * *

"Ugh...your punches are brutal...I was seeing stars there for a second..." Yosuke groaned as the pair laid on the ground, beaten, bruised and little bit bloody

"Chie's been teaching me some Martial Arts" Yu explained with a small laugh "I'm sure she'll teach you too if you ask her

"I'm good" Yosuke chuckled "But thanks, man...I don't know how to say it, but...that sure beat words."

...

"When I was a kid, I used to lay on the roof and just stare at the sunset..." Yu muttered as the duo stared up at darkening sky "Me and my dad...almost every day"

"You miss your dad...don't you?" Yosuke asked

"I do..." Yu nodded "I hate him...for what he did...but he's still my dad"

...

"The sky's so high up." Yosuke changed the subject as the two looked up "Is Saki-senpai watching us...? Is she smiling at us? Senpai...I'm going to live without lying to myself, without deceiving myself...days like today, days like before when I did nothing...they're all important days...They're all days you didn't live to see...I'm going to live them here."

...

"AH! YU! YOSUKE!"

"Wha-Chie?" Yu questioned as the girl ran over

"Oh, hey" Yosuke waved

"What happened!?" She cried out "Who did this to you?!"

"We did it to each other" Yu explained "It's a long story"

"Wait, so you just beat the crap out of each other?!" Chie spat

"Like he said, it's a long story" Yosuke chuckled

"You're..." Chie started to growl but then she let it go with a sigh and kneeled down to look down at Yu's bruised face "Look at you..."

"I'm fine...honestly" Yu smiled

"I'm fine too" Yosuke noted

"You're all..." Chie mumbled, not noticing Yosuke's statement "You idiot..."

Yosuke gazed at the two, noticing the two gazing into each others eyes, their expressions seemed like they were sad simply because the other was sad, but then small smiles broke out on their faces as they realized the other was fine. Their eyes never breaking contact

...

"You two are together, aren't you?" Yosuke questioned

"WHA!?" The two spluttered in unison

"Heh..." Yosuke laughed

"I-It's, No!" Chie tried to explain

"We-" Yu tried to add in

"Don't even try to deny it, you were giving each other googly eyes" Yosuke chuckled

"N-No I wasn't!" Chie defended

"Please, the way you were looking at each other...it was the way I looked at Saki" Yosuke muttered

...

"It...was, huh?" Yu questioned

"Yu!" Chie shouted

"I'm sure you two had a reason for not telling me" Yosuke smiled "Relax, I'll keep my mouth shut about you two"

...

"Thank you" Chie muttered "We...don't anybody to know just yet"

"It's cool" Yosuke waved her off "I'm not about to blab about my best buds okay?"

"Thanks...bro" Yu smiled

"Wow, that's the first time _you've _called _me _that" Yosuke chuckled "Suppose we're all equal now..."

"Wait, so this was some kinda macho thing?! Honestl-" Chie began to groan until Yu pulled her down and laid her head against his chest "Wha-Yu!"

"Let's all just...stay here for a while" Yu smirked

...

"Idiot" Chie laughed quietly before pulling herself off and lying beside him "The sky's so clear..."

"Yeah...It's nice..." Yu smiled as a blue butterfly flew above the trio

**JUNE 27/ KIRIJO HOME**

"This voice stands out amongst the others" Mitsuru stated "Sho Minazuki..."

"Who is he?" Her blue haired companion questioned

"According to this, he was Ikutsuki's favorite subject" Mitsuru read out "An orphan he pulled off the streets, he was seemingly killed in the lab explosion but no body was recovered..."

"You think that's he the one who did it?" She asked

"_If _he's alive, he'd be a obvious suspect, when even if he is, we have no idea of his location, or even his appearance..." Mitsuru sighed

"Is it possible that this is linked to those goings on in Inaba?" She questioned

"It's possible" Mitsuru nodded "I fear Katsuya may be out of his league down there..."

"Is it time for us to join him?"

"Not yet, Yamagishi" Mitsuru shook her head "I have full faith in him but he seems to be doing well for now..."

"I understand Mitsuru-Senpai" Fuuka nodded "But...should we prepare?"

"I'm considering getting in contact with Akihiko" Mitsuru informed "As well as Amada and Iori..."

"What about Takeba-san?" Fuuka asked

"She's busy with her modeling job" Mitsuru sighed "We've all tried to move on after the Dark Hour..."

"And Arisato-san..." Fuuka muttered

"Yes..." Mitsuru nodded quietly "And now it seems we're heading back into old times..."

"If this...Minazuki person is behind this...could he be...trying to avenge Ikutsuki?" Fuuka questioned

"It is possible" Came the voice of Aigis as she stepped into the room "Forgive me for eavesdropping"

"Not at all" Mitsuru waved her off "If you came here, I take it you've discovered something?"

"Indeed" Aigis nodded "Reading several files, I discovered that this Sho Minazuki boy considered Shuji Ikutsuki to be his father. If it is him, then it is likely that his motive is revenge"

"All signs point to him...but like I said, we have no idea where he is, what he looks like...or even if he's alive" Mitsuru noted "This isn't like Strega, when they came to us..."

...

"I hate to say it...but I think we need to wait from this Minazuki person to act" Fuuka sighed

"I apologize for not being of more use" Aigis stated

"It's fine" Mitsuru told her "There's nothing any of us can do right now..."

**GAS STATION**

"I don't get it" Sho sighed "All this shit seems way too complicated"

"It is how it must go" The Attendant explained as he stroked the stolen container

"So this person throws the people they see on the Midnight Channel thing into the TV world, right? But they only appear on that after they appear on an actual TV program...so how in the everloving _fuck_, are we going to end up getting a robot on the news for _them _to see?" Sho groaned "We could just toss it in ourselves..."

"We _could_, but that would break the pattern" The Attendant explained "We must not let Yu Narukami's suspicion be aroused. We must lead him and his friends on as long as possible"

"That's such horse shit" Sho growled "But how's this fucker even throwing these people in there? Don't you need a Persona to do that?"

...

"Oh" Sho muttered before letting out a small chuckle "Oh, that's rich..."

"They has served us well so far...we shall assist them, just as they assisted us" The Attendant spoke "The time will come when they shall serve their ultimate purpose..."

"You're a crafty bastard, you know that?" Sho laughed "Hey...can I ask you something?"

"Hmm? How odd of you to ask such a thing" The Attendant muttered "What is it?"

"Why...here?" Sho questioned "Why have all this shit go down in the middle of nowhere?"

"Because it is here where humanity is at its lowest" The Attendant chuckled "People here will do anything for their own amusement, including search for a truth that will ultimately lead them down a path of destruction"

"I'm not following" Sho shrugged

"I chose here since the people here are fools who play directly into the palm of our hands" The Attendant laughed "No one proves this more than Yu Narukami, which is why I bestowed upon him a portion of my power"

"So then...he's the final piece in the puzzle huh?" Sho questioned

"Indeed...now all that remains is to await the right time" The Attendant muttered

**JUNE 28/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Uh... Umm. Do you remember Kasai-san, the waitress? She seems to have told everyone about you..." Yukiko admitted with a blush "Now, they're saying I sh-should bring you home...adults are so quick to poke fun at me...It's such a hassle, isn't it...? B-But of course my family runs an inn, so guests come by all the time...maybe next time, you can just come in..."

...

"Do they...know I'm not your boyfriend?" Yu questioned

"Oh! Of course! I told them off!" Yukiko defended, stung by his choice of words

"Oh, Yuki-chan!" Came the voice of an elderly man she recognized as the deputy mayor "The people at the inn seemed very busy. Is something going on?"

"Huh...? Oh no! Today was the interview for the travel show!" Yukiko gasped

"On TV? That's great! You'll try and make Inaba look inviting, won't you?" He smiled before leaving

"I'm sorry Yu-kun but I have to go" She apologized

"You're going to be on TV?" Yu asked

"No, I won't. We requested that no employees will be filmed or shown." She explained "It seems like a serious travel show, so everyone's eager to help. They need my help to clean up so I-"

"There you are, Yuki-chan!" Came an urgent voice that approached the duo

"Kasai-san? What's wrong?" Yukiko questioned

"That TV crew came, but don't go to the inn! It was a trick! It's those people from that _news of the weird_ show!" Kasai explained "And I think they're looking for you! So stay put, you got that?"

"Huh...o-okay, but..." Yukiko began, but speak of the devil...

"There you are." Came the voice they recognized at that shady reporter from the other day "No use in hiding, future manager of the cursed inn."

"C-Cursed inn...?" Yukiko questioned

"We know all about that murder case. Mayumi Yamano stayed at your place, right? And you guys've been hurting what with the drop in visitors, huh?" The reporter chuckled "So I came up with a great idea! _The High-School Manager's Embarrassing Struggle: Renovating the Cursed Inn! _How's that grab you? The customers will be pouring in, I tell ya."

"I don't understand what you..." Yukiko muttered

"I want you to be the star. When we introduce the hot springs, let us film a little bathing scene, eh?" He laughed "_The Modest Manager's Steamy Service!_ Our ratings will be through the roof!"

"That sounds like a great idea!" Came the voice of his young assistant

"Listen, you..." Kasai growled

"Anyway, please leave. We are not interested in your coverage." Yukiko explained

"You're refusing? Look, kid..." The reporter groaned "You don't know the power of television, do you? Well, I can't blame you, living in the countryside. We're trying to help you out here. I mean, do you _want_ the patrons to dry up? If you're gonna be the next manager, I'm trusting you to make the right decision here."

"I...won't be...the next manager." Yukiko muttered

"Oh, really? Hmmm...that so?" He questioned "Well, you just say the word, and I can hook you up with a better gig than running this dump of an inn. You could call yourself the _Former High-School Innkeeper_...Heheheh, I'm already liking the sound of that! Why don't you hear me out?"

"How dare you say that to Yuki-chan...!" Kasai snapped

"You should go" Yu stated sternly

"Oooh, am I supposed to be scared of some old maid and your boyfriend?" The reported laughed

"...It's okay. Let him say what he wants." Yukiko told him "He'll go home once he gets it all out."

"What the shit...?" The reported growled "You say your inn has been going for generations, but all that means is, it's crappy and run-down. Tradition is so last year. You'd be better off if you did close up shop. I've seen the stuff you serve...small portions, decent service, nothing that stands out. If you want customers, you can't just do the same old, same old. You guys don't get that, and that's why you suck. Your waitresses don't even give any extra service unless you tip 'em, huh? Heyyyy...I know! Why don't you make all the waitresses young girls, and have 'em do all-day menus? Y'know, spread the futon out, then go straight in! But anyways, I was saying...let's give your place a little TV-style publicity. Use your head, will ya?"

"Shut-" Yukiko mumbled

"You need to shut up" Yu growled

"-ing face" Yukiko finished

"Huh?" The reporter questioned

"Shut you-" She muttered again

"Hey, speak up, I can't hear you" The reporter commanded

"I said..." Yukiko growled as she bared her teeth "SHUT. YOUR. **FUCKING**.FACE!"

"Y-Yuki-chan!" Kasai gasped

"Whoa..." Yu mumbled

"Don't say another word about our inn! Who'd take your fucking stupid ideas seriously!?" Yukiko roared "Take all the idea you had for your coverage of our inn and shove it up your ass!"

"You...bitch!" The reporter stuttered "If that's how you wanna play it, I'll plaster those words all over prime time! See how that feels!"

"Go ahead, by all means" Yukiko mocked "I'm sure your sponsors will appreciate the official complaint and lawsuit we'll hold against you"

"S-Sir!" The young assistant panicked

"Let's get out of here" The reporter growled as the two took their leave

"I-I should contact the Inn" Kasai stated as she walked away, leaving Yu and Yukiko alone

...

"Yukik-"

"FUCK!" She screamed

"Okay..." Yu stated meekly as he shrank away

"O-Oh!" Yukiko gasped "I'm sorry, I...I...I guess I kind of lost it there..."

"You swore like a sailor..." Yu muttered

"W-Was I scary?" Yukiko questioned

"A little..." Yu told her

"I...I see" She mumbled with a small blush "I'm sorry..."

"It's okay" He waved her off

"There was a time not long ago when I thought, _It'd be better off if it closed_,but it's like my home..." Yukiko muttered "It's where everyone in my world is...I can't let it close..."

...

"Hey... Can you stay here just a little longer...?" Yukiko asked "Please...my heart's racing"

"Sure" Yu nodded as he stood beside her, facing out to the street, completely missing the affectionate look from Yukiko

_"Why...isn't he looking at me the same way?...I thought he liked me" She muttered to herself_

**JUNE 29/ HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"Uhh...when you met Ma at the hospital...she say anything about me?" Kanji asked

...

"A few things yeah" Yu nodded

"Right..." Kanji sighed "Wish I could quit being afraid of hospitals. I gotta get stronger..."

"Family issues can be a real pain" Yu said with joining sigh

"You got family issues too, Senpai?" Kanji questioned

"Yeah..." Yu nodded "My parents are getting divorced"

"Oh...geez" Kanji mumbled "I'm sorry Senpai..."

"It's okay, not your fault" Yu chuckled

"You know...there are times when you just look...happy" Kanji informed

"Yeah...I got something on my mind" Yu explained, trying not to reveal that those thoughts were of Chie

"I see...happy thoughts huh?...Maybe I should try that" Kanji sighed "But I still feel so bundled up..."

"You can talk to me" Yu explained "Believe me, it feels good to get it off your chest"

...

"I...I dunno..." Kanji sighed "I-I...I'm not sure If..."

"I can keep it between us if you want" Yu stated

...

"It really feels good to get this off your chest, huh?" Kanji questioned

"Yep" Yu nodded

"Alright...but you gotta keep this between us, right?" Kanji warned

"'Promise" Yu stated

"Okay...umm" Kanji mumbled "You know how...I freak out when people call me..._strange_?"

"Yeah" Yu recalled

"Well...I thought about it...especially after the camping trip and remembering that other me...and...I..." Kanji mumbled "I've been doing a lot thinking and...I think...or atleast it's possible...that I might be..."

"Might be what?" Yu questioned

"That I might actually be..." Kanji muttered "Strange..."

"What do you mean?" Yu asked

...

"I think I...I actually might be...you know..." Kanji sighed

...

"O-Oh"

"I-I'm not 100% sure on anything yet!" Kanji defended "Keep a lid on this! Please!"

"O-Oh, yeah! Sure!" Yu nodded "I won't tell a soul, I promise"

"Thank you" Kanji sighed

"Can't believe you trust me with this..." Yu muttered "You've barely known me a few months"

"Yeah...that's right" Kanji chuckled "I guess...I know you're an upstanding guy Senpai..."

"We all have secrets..." Yu nodded "You have...that, Yosuke has his nurse fetish and I have Ch-"

"Huh?" Kanji questioned

"U-Uh" Yu stuttered _"Did I really just let that slip?!"_

"Ch...Chie-senpai?" Kanji questioned "What? You dating her in secret or something?"

...

"W-Whoa!" Kanji gasped as he observed the expression on Yu's face "You and Chie-senpai? For real?"

"Please...keep it to yourself!" Yu pleaded

"O-Oh! Of course!" Kanji bowed "I trusted you to my secret, so you can trust me with yours! I'll keep my trap shut Senpai! I promise!"

"Thank you" Yu sighed _"She's going to kill me"_

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE/ YU'S ROOM**

_"__**WHAT?! NOW KANJI KNOWS?!**__"_

"Technically, he guessed" Yu told her

_"I don't believe this" Chie sighed "How did he even find out?"_

"I...let it slip..." Yu groaned "I'm sorry...I'm an idiot"

_"Soon, everyone's going to know" Chie grumbled _

"I'm sorry...I'm a shitty boyfriend" Yu sighed "I don't take you out and I hide our relationship away..."

_"H-Hey...it was a mutual agreement to hide it from everyone" Chie reminded him "It's okay..."_

"I'm still feel like I should make it up to you..." Yu mumbled "So...I'm taking you on a date, tomorrow"

_"W-Wha?!" Chie gasped "But we can't! Everyone will spot us! People will blab about it!"_

"Meet me tomorrow at the Train Station, we'll head to Okina City" Yu smiled

_"B-But..." Chie panicked "We-"_

_*CLICK*_

"H-Hey!" Chie cried as Yu hung up "A...A real date...huh?"

**JUNE 30/ OKINA CITY**

"A real date..." Chie muttered as the two stood in front of the station

"Yeah, I figured it was time for us" Yu smiled

"I...I'm not sure what you even do on a date" She admitted "All we did is go to Aiya a few times and see a movie once"

"Well then" Yu smiled before grabbing her hand "We''ll just do it all"

"H-Hey!" Chie gasped as Yu pulled her down the street "I thought we agreed we weren't the type to hold hands!"

**EVENING/ PATH TO SATONAKA RESIDENCE**

"That was fun..." Chie smiled as Yu walked her home "Though I thought you were joking though when you said we'd do everything..."

"Yeah" Yu laughed "Just about drained my wallet in the process"

"Thanks..." Chie said with a blush "Winning me a doll in the crane machine was a bit much though"

"I'll take it off your hands if you want" Yu chuckled

"Wha-No way!" Chie cried as she clutched the plush "I've been trying to get one of these since I was nine!"

Yu laughed in response, causing the girl to giggle

"I'm...so happy when I'm with you" She stated with an affectionate look "I love you...so much"

"And I love you" He smiled as he walked closer to her "I always will..."

"Yeah" She smiled sweetly as Yu wrapped his arms around her "Me and you...this is forever, right?"

"Yeah..." Yu smiled as he buried his head in Chie's hair "Forever..."

...

"Chi-Oh!" Came the voice of Chie's mother as she stepped out of her home

"M-Mom!" Chie gasped as she broke the hug

"Oh, I'm sorry" Chie's mother apologized "I didn't mean to interrupt"

"T-This is Yu Narukami" Chie tried to explain "He's a friend from school, he was just walking me home!"

"Oh, so you're Yu-kun" Chie's mother smiled "My, such a handsome young man! You certainly picked a good one Chie"

"W-Wha?!" Chie gasped "Oh no! We're not-!"

"Oh please, a mother knows" She laughed "The way you've been talking about him, plus you too _were_ just hugging

...

I trust that's as far as you've gone, correct?"

"Yes Ma'am!" Yu stated with a bow

"Yu!" Chie snapped

_"Is that him outside?!"_

"Oh no..." Chie's mother sighed

"Where is he?!" Came the roar of Chie's father as he stormed outside

"D-Dad!" Chie shouted

"Is this him?!" He snapped with an accusing point

"Dad, stop!" Chie pleaded as her Dad stomped towards Yu

"Oh honestly!" Chie's mother sighed

"Dad, ple-" Chie began before Yu stopped her

"It's okay, I'll handle this" Yu smiled at her before turning to Chie's father "Sir, I'm Yu Narukami, I-"

**5 MINUTES LATER**

"Chie, marry this boy!" Chie's father demanded

"D-Dad!" Chie gasped

"So...beautiful" Chie's mother sniffed "You're a born poet, Yu-kun"

"Thank you Ma'am" Yu smiled with a bow

"Did you not hear it Chie?" Chie's father asked "How he listed all things he loved about you, your eyes, your...oh god, I think I'm crying again!"

"Come inside!" Chie's mother commanded "I don't want the neighbors to see us cry!"

"What did you..." Chie muttered as her parents dragged themselves inside

"I meant every word of it..." Yu smiled

"You..." Chie sighed before burying her head in his chest "You're a jerk..."

"Sorry" Yu laughed

"I'll go inside and tell them to keep their traps shut..." Chie groaned before placing a small kiss on Yu's lips "I love you"

"I love you too" He smiled as Chie walked inside

_"A mother knows..." Chie's mothers voice rang through his ears_

...

"Oh hell"

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"Oh hello Yu" Motoko smiled as he son ran back into the home, noticing his panicked expression, a smile crept upon her face "Have fun on your date?"

**JULY 1/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"So...Yosuke, Kanji, My Parents and Your Mom...that's five...five people who know about our _secret _relationship" Chie groaned as the duo sat around the table

"My bad..." Yu sighed

"Oh hush you two" Motoko smiled as she joined the two "You're young and in love, it's sweet!"

"M-Mom..." Yu groaned

"Oh don't be embarrassed, I think it's sweet" Motoko smiled "So...are you using protection?"

"MOM!" Yu snapped as Chie's face turned red

"What? I'm only 42 Yu! I'm too young to be a grandmother!"

"We aren't doing..._that_" Yu gurgled as his face was as red as Chie's

"Oh good, you're far too young for that" Motoko sighed in relief "So how long have you two been together?"

"A month...a month today in fact" Chie noted

"Mom, what's this all about?" Yu questioned "Why did you call us here?"

"Well...you two have been hiding this" Motoko noted "Why?"

...

"One...one of my friends likes Yu-kun too..." Chie muttered

"And one of my friends likes Chie..." Yu explained

"Oh dear..." Motoko mumbled

"We...don't want to hurt them" Chie said

"So we figured, until we're ready and find a way to do it without hurting their feelings...we'd keep it to ourselves" Yu revealed

"I see..." Motoko sighed "That is a predicament"

"Mrs. Narukami...please don't reveal this to anyone" Chie pleaded "I don't want to hurt Yukiko..."

"I don't want to hurt Kou either..." Yu sighed

"I don't think there's a way to reveal this to them _without _hurting them" Motoko told them "You two can't expect their feelings to just disappear one day"

"I know..." Yu groaned "We figured if we just...ignored their advances, they'd take the hint"

"That's a horrible thing to do..." Motoko stated sternly "You're leading them on, continuing to let them think they have a chance, If you're going to reject them, then just-"

"We know it's a terrible thing to do" Chie explained "But...we don't know what to do"

"Kou's been in love with her for so long" Yu sighed "And I pretty much stole her..."

"I told you before, you didn't steal anything" Chie told him "I love _you_,you big dummy, not him..."

"I don't want to ruin your friendship with Yukiko..." Yu muttered "But...I just...can't stop the way I feel about you"

...

"You two are so cute" Motoko smiled, causing the two to turn red "It's really just up to you two what you want to do, keep hiding it if you want. I'm not saying you two need to split up, you're far too in love to deny your feelings"

"M-Mom..." Yu blushed

"Oh please Yu, you're the happiest I've seen you in years" Motoko smiled "You're so in love with her"

"S-Stop!" Yu demanded, causing Chie to laugh

"I guess Yosuke was right, we really do give each other the googly eyes" Chie smiled with a small laugh

"And she looks at you the same way" Motoko smiled "Thank you Chie, it's nice to see my son smile again"

"Y-Yeah" Chie mumbled as she nodded "I...I really do love Yu-kun, Ma'am..."

"Oh that's so sweet!" Motoko squealed "And Yu, you're going to marry this girl?"

"MOM!" Yu roared as Chie turned completely red

**JULY 2/ SHIROGANE ESTATE**

"Naoto?"

"Yes, Grandfather?" Naoto questioned as her elderly grandfather entered her room

"My dear...you've been locked in here for the last few days" He noted "I'm getting worried"

"I'm fine Grandfather, I've just been working" Naoto explained

"Would this have anything to do with that man who came here a few day ago?" He questioned "Katsuya, was it?"

...

"Perhaps..." Naoto muttered

"My dear..." He sighed "I want you to be safe..."

"Grandfather, I'm fine" Naoto explained

"You're inverstigating a _murder_...plus I fear that you may tread down place you should not" He sighed

"Do not worry Grandfather..." Naoto stated "I'll be fine..."

...

"If you say so my dear..." He muttered before departing

"Now then..." Naoto muttered, as she returned to her computer "Back to you, Ms Kirijo..."

* * *

"Naoto my dear..." Her Grandfather sighed "do not tread too deeply..."

**JULY 3/ SHADOW OPERATIVES FACILITY**

"Our files were hacked last night" One of their science officers revealed

"What?!" Fuuka gasped

"Any idea on who did it?" Mitsuru asked

"No, they used an I.P Address scrambler, whoever did this, they knew what they were doing" The science officer explained "We tried to place a location on our hacker, but the best location we managed to close in on was Yaso-Inaba, a small rural village"

"Inaba..." Mitsuru muttered

"Do you think..." Fuuka began

"Minazuki?" Mitsuru questioned "It's possible...but the fact that it's from Inaba is no coincidence"

...

"Mitsuru-Senpai..." Fuuka mumbled

"Yes, I know" Mitsuru nodded "Kikuno..."

"Yes?" The Purple haired maid asked

"Find Akihiko's location and contact information..." Mitsuru muttered "We must start getting ready..."

**JULY 4/ SCHOOL**

"Oh, it's you..." Naoki Konishi gurgled as Yu approached him "What do you want?"

"I found this..." Yu explained as he handed him a hankercheif that had _Konishi _stitched into it "I figured I should return it"

"This was...Saki's..." He muttered as he looked at it "You could've just thrown that away. Mom put it in my bag by mistake...no one ever uses it anymore, thanks...I guess"

"I'm actually glad" Yu nodded "I've been looking for a reason to talk to you"

"Yeah...listen" Naoki sighed "I'm...sorry about what I said that day..."

"It's okay" Yu waved it off

"They association actually fired me" Naoki stated with a small hum "'S'pose it's my own fault...sorry, I can't chat, I got to get to class"

"Okay" Yu said

"If it's okay with you, maybe we can have talk again some time..." Naoki muttered "I'm usually around my family liquor store if you want to find me. Sorry but I got to run"

"See ya" Yu waved as Naoki departed, feeling the start of a new bond

**JULY 5/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Big Bro..." Nanako muttered as the two watched TV "What do they mean when they say _real _family?"

"Well...your real family are those who love you a lot" He explained

"Oh, then you're my real big brother" Nanako smiled "And Daddy's my real father...but I don't think Daddy loves me..."

"Why would you think that?" Yu questioned

"He doesn't come home often...is it because I'm not his _real _daughter?" Nanako questioned

"That's not true" Yu stated with a stern shake of his head

"B-But! Dad's not here..." Nanako stated, not satisfied with his answer "Mom...why'd she leave me? When Mom was still here, we all went out together...we picked flowers at Samegawa..."

"Y'know...I don't see my dad a lot too" Yu noted

"Oh yeah..." Nanako muttered

"I don't know how to feel about my dad..." Yu explained "I though he loved me and my mom but...things happened"

"Things?" Nanako questioned

"And then my Mom showed up...and for the longest time, I thought she didn't love me either...but she does...I felt the same you did, but I found that she did love me...she always did

...

Your dad really does love you Nanako...even after someone else leaves you, even if you don't think he does...he's always loved you"

...

"Really?" Nanako asked

"Yeah, trust me" Yu smiled

"I'm home..." Dojima's voice rang through as he entered the house

"Dad!" Nanako cried as she ran over to her father

"Hmm? What's wr-Ugh!" Dojima cried as he wrapped her arms around him "What's...this about?"

"Daddy..." She smiled as she snuggled into him

**JULY 6/ JUNES**

"Oh hey, what are you doing here?" Adachi asked as Yu entered Junes

"I'm here to meet my Mom, her shifts ends in..." Yu trailed "A while..."

"So you're killing time? Tough to do out here in the sticks, isn't it? There's nothing here." Adachi sighed "It's not like the city at all."

"You're from the city, Adachi-san?" Yu asked

"Yep" Adachi smiled "I got transferred here when I...screwed up pretty bad. Get this; my first assignment here was tracking down a cat. My suit got so dirty...and they wouldn't let me expense the dry cleaning bill! Next, I played peacemaker in a spat some married couple was having. I can't believe they've got the police doing that stuff."

"You...don't seem happy here" Yu noted

"Yeah" Adachi sighed "You and your buddies seem to like it here, but this countryside really ain't for me...I can't even kick back aback as of late since that one case, you know? It's still not solved yet. The higher-ups don't know what to do. They keep changing procedure on the fly

...

Oops! I hope I'm not making you nervous. You guys have nothing to worry about, you know. Us police are on the job!"

"I appreciate your concern Adachi-san" Yu smiled

The two waved as they departed, unaware of the red haired boy who was focused on them from a distance

**JULY 7/ AIYA**

"You're chickening out of this, day in and day out" Daisuke groaned "If you tell her soon, _I _will!"

"Oh shut up!" Kou growled "You pull this every time!"

"There is literally _nothing_ stopping you from telling her right now" Daisuke sighed "Just pull out your phone and call her already"

"Lay off!" Kou defended

"I'm trying to help!" Kou stated

"Man, I could hear you guys all the way outside" Yosuke said as he stepped inside the diner "What's going on with you two?"

"I'll tell ya" Daisuke grunted

"No!" Kou shouted

"Whoa, what's up?" Yosuke questioned

"Kou's in love with Satonaka" Daisuke explained

"H-Hey!" Kou snapped

"W-Whoa, wait, what?!" Yosuke tripped over his words

"Why would you tell him that?!" Kou shouted

"Because you're doing nothing about it!" Daisuke snapped back "Who knows, maybe Hanamura can help out!"

"He just left!" Kou snapped as he pointed to the empty spot where Hanamura stood

"O-Oh..." Daisuke muttered

* * *

_"You knew?!"_

"Of course I knew, why do you think me and Chie chose to hide it?" Yu questioned

_"Oh...OHHHHH!" Yosuke finally realized_

"Plus...there's Yukiko's feelings for me" Yu sighed

_"What?! Yukiko too?! Dude, you can't hog them all!"_

"I'm not hogging them!" Yu shouted "We just...can't...figure out how to tell them..."

_"Oh I got ya..." Yosuke nodded "I knew there was a reason you were keeping this secret"_

"Yeah" Yu sighed

_"Relax, remember, I promised to keep a lid on you two" Yosuke explained "Actually, I'm glad I called you. I have to let you know something"_

"Yeah?"

_"Condoms are half off this week at Junes, you and Chie gotta be safe y'know"_

"I'm hanging up now"

_"Aw come o-"_

_*CLICK*_

**JULY 8/ JUNES**

_"You won't tell?" _

"I promise" Yosuke swore

_"Thanks" Kou sighed before hanging up_

"What was that about?" Kanji asked

"Oh, nothing" Yosuke shrugged him off

"Didn't sound like something..." Kanji noted "You said _I Promise _like fifty times on that call..."

"He's right" Yukiko nodded "It did seem odd"

"Well...it's...it's nothing" Yosuke explained

"Well it's obviously not..." Kanji noted "Is something up?"

"N-No!" Yosuke defended

"Are you okay, Yosuke-kun?" Yukiko asked

"Y-Yeah!" Yosuke nodded

...

"You're lying" Yukiko noted

"No I'm not!" Yosuke defended

"Dude..." Kanji glared

"I'm not!" Yosuke defended

"Fine" Kanji shrugged "I ain't gonna egg you on to spill your secrets..."

"Why not?" Yukiko questioned

"Y-Yukiko-senpai!" Kanji gaped

"Oh, I didn't mean..." Yukiko tried to defend

"Man..." Yosuke sighed before noticing an approaching face "Oh, Daisuke?"

"Hey" Daisuke muttered "Listen man, I really shouldn't of told about Kou's crush the other day..."

"Oh it's cool" Yosuke waved it off

"Ichijo-senpai's crush?" Kanji questioned

"O-OH! I...I didn't see you guys there" Daisuke gulped

"How did you not?!" Yosuke questioned

"Ichijo-kun has a crush?" Yukiko asked "On who?"

"I...I shouldn't say" Daisuke muttered

"Is it...me?" Yukiko asked

No response

"Chie?"

Both Yosuke's and Daisuke's eyes twitched

"Oh, Chie?! Really?" Yukiko gasped

"But wait, Chie-senpai?!" Kanji shouted "But she's wi-"

"Hmm?" Yukiko questioned

"O-Oh! N-Nothing!" Kanji gulped

"Dude!" Yosuke snapped at a smirking Daisuke "You totally did this on purpose!"

"I figured the more people know, the sooner this is all done with" Daisuke chuckled

"Dude! Did you even think about how Chie feels about this?!" Yosuke questioned "What if she doesn't like Kou back?!"

"Huh?" Daisuke questioned "I...I didn't even consider that..."

"Maybe...I should see if Chie likes Ichijo-kun too..." Yukiko muttered "Oh this is so nice! Chie's never had a boyfriend"

"Umm..." Yosuke and Kanji muttered in unison

**JUNE 9/ MIDNIGHT/ YU'S ROOM**

"It's empty..." Yu sighed as he viewed the Midnight Channel

_PIPIPIPIPI_

_"Yo" Yosuke greeted as Yu answered the phone "Looks like everything's good, Rise's safe..."_

"Yeah, and maybe we can get some answers from the detective..." Yu noted

_"Yeah, he'd said he'll cal us...does he know our numbers?"_

"He's a Police Officer...I wouldn't put it above him" Yu sighed "I'll see you tomorrow okay?"

**GAS STATION**

"So...once again" The Attendnant sighed as he overlooked the empty, fog covered shopping district

"Yeah...looks like everyone escape with their lifes this time..." Came a voice The Attendant recognized as Sho "Or...not"

"What do you-" The Attendant asked, before his eyes laid upon Sho as he walked among the fog. A sadistic smile on his, and a bloody Katana in his hand "You!...What did you do?!"

"I just..._killed _some time" Sho laughed "Get it?! KILLED SOME TIME! IT'S FUNNY! **LAUGH!**"

His laugh proceeded to echo throughout the entire shopping district, and further out amongst the town, even reaching the blood stained water tower

Where the dead bodies of Kinshiro Morooka and Mitsuo Kubo hanged...

* * *

I _literally _flipped a coin to decide calling the Persona 3 protagonist Minato Arisato (His name in the Manga) or Makoto Yuki (His name in the Movie series). It came up heads so Minato it is. I'm glad too since I felt Makoto is too close to Motoko, which is what I named Yu's mother

Just an F.Y.I, since I mentioned Strega and I know it's possible to revive her in P3 FES, Chidori is dead in this continuity

Nothing's 100% with Kanji's sexuality okay? Don't freak out over it


	10. Heartbeat, Heartbreak

**HEARTBEAT, HEARTBREAK**

"You fool!" The Attendant roared as he rushed over and grabbed him by the collar "What have you done?!"

"Didn't you hear? Okay let me repeat it" Sho sighed nonchalantly "I was _killing _some ti-"

"You idiot!" The Attendant screamed "Do you realise what you have done?!"

"Big whoop, I killed some pathetic runt" Sho shrugged

"You...this has ruined everything!" The Attendant informed him "If a dead body shows up then those brats will think this is connected to the TV world...they will investigate and find nothing! They will get suspicious and that will lead them to us!"

"Oh boo-hoo" Sho mocked "If you want them to go in there and find something, then you know what to do..."

...

"You brat" The Attendant growled "Was this your plan?"

"Not really" Sho shrugged "When I went out back on the 25th? I ran into some punk named Mitsuo Kubo, he went on and on about how the world is shit, I kinda liked him! Then he told me he was the one committing the murders...desperate plea for attention. He invited me to watch him kill some old fart, a teacher...it was pathetic, so I stabbed him"

"You killed him, just for that!?" The Attendant spat "We could have used him as red herring!"

"Oh, but the look he gave when I rammed my sword through his gut was hilarious!" Sho laughed "He screamed and cried, _I don't wanna die!_ he said, like a little wuss...watching him slowly die was hilarious"

"You..." The attendant growled "...Follow me"

"Finally" Sho chuckled as The Attendant led him back into the gas station

"You will have to make up for this at some point..." The Attendant grumbled as he led Sho to the back of the Gas Station, where a large container sat, hidden away from the public

"So..." Sho trailed on, the Attendant sighed as released the lock on it and opened it up, revealing the contents

A robotic frame with the face of a young woman with long silver hair

"Man...an actual android..." Sho whistled, but that whistle was cut short when The Attendant clutched him by the throat

"Clearly, your _father _never informed you that you don't bite the hand that feeds you..." The Attendant growled, his right eye glowing red, his left eye glowing yellow "I alone hold the power to grant your desires, it would be best if you don't disobey me in the future and throw a wrench in both our plans"

The Attendant went to continue, but noticed Sho had reached behind him and grabbed one of his Katana's. Swinging it down, The Attendant caught the blade and noted the unusual look in Sho's eyes

"So, _you're _back" The Attendant muttered "So that one was Sho...so you must be Minazuki, correct? The one that awakened thanks to this Ikutsuki persons experimentation. So, you've awakened to protect the boy...right?"

"Un...hand me" Minazuki commanded

"Very well" The Attendant hummed before throwing Minazuki, back first into the wall. But then he walked over and grabbed Sho by the hair, holding him up "But mark my words boy, you _will _obey my orders down to the very last detail, lest you wish to be replaced and your wish cast aside..."

"Bas...tard" Sho groaned

"I will not throw the Android in now" The Attendant stated as he dropped Sho, his eyes finally returning to their regular color "Let's wait, lest not to break the pattern, they were suspicious enough when the Ichijo and Nagase boy disappeared so soon after the Amagi girl...but the machine will join whomever is designated to be thrown in next by him..."

**JULY 10/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD/ MORNING**

"What's going on?" Yu mumbled, still half-asleep as loud sounds cut through the air outside "Are those...sirens?"

_PIPIPIPIPIPIPIPI_

Groaning and reaching over, he opened up his cell phone and took the call without even checking the Caller I.D

"Hello?"

_"H-Hey!" Chie's voice rang "Did you hear?! They found TWO dead bodies!"_

"What!?" Yu cried, now completely awake

_"They found them just outside the shopping district!" Chie explained "I don't get it! I mean, we…look, we're all meeting at Junes. Come over right away!"_

"I got it, I'll see you there!" Yu nodded before hanging up

**JUNES**

"Over here" Chie waved Yu over to the table with Yukiko, Kanji and Kou "Daisuke and Yosuke are checking out over the scene, they should be back soon"

"I don't get this..." Kou groaned "We saved Rise..."

"Hey" Yosuke's voice cut through as he and Daisuke returned "Yeah...it was murder alright"

"There...was a pretty large bloodstain" Daisuke explained "At least one of them was stabbed and bled to death..."

"That's not all" Yosuke sighed "One of the victims...it was King Moron"

"What!?" Yukiko gasped

"K-King Moron…!?" Chie stuttered

"You mean _that_ King Moron!? Senpai's homeroom teacher?" Kanji questioned

"Wh-Why…!?" Chie spluttered "What on earth's going on here!?"

"How am I supposed to know!? But I talked to a guy there who saw it!" Yosuke groaned "The other guy I didn't know...but apparently he was a student at another high school"

"Gotta be shitting me…ain't the killer targeting people who get shown on TV?" Kanji growled "I ain't never seen King Moron on the Midnight Channel, or any other programs!"

"Why…? Why did this happen?" Yosuke asked

"I thought we finally figured some things out…were they all just a big coincidence…?" Chie muttered "Maybe the Midnight Channel doesn't have anything to do with this…"

"We can't say that just because one murder didn't fit the pattern" Daisuke sighed "It seemed...different this time"

"What do you mean?" Yu asked

"The other victim...he clearly bled to death..." Daisuke explained "Not in the TV, but right there"

"Yeah, there was a lot of blood" Yosuke nodded

"Maybe this guy...saw Morooka's body and was killed to keep quiet...or maybe this kid _was _the Murderer and killed Morooka but he managed to stab him with something and take him with him...damn it, who am I kidding" Daisuke groaned "I'm just grasping as straws here, I'm just as clueless as you guys"

"Dammit! We came so far, and now we're back to square one!?" Yosuke growled "Were we in over our heads, trying to catch a culprit that even the police couldn't find…?"

"Don't get ready to give up just yet" Yu commanded "Even if we've got the pattern wrong, it doesn't matter. Even if we've been wrong the whole time, we've saved people and we need to keep trying."

"Damn straight!" Kanji cheered "We started this thing 'cause the police can't tell their asses from their give up now, and that shithead's gonna be on the loose forever. This ain't the time for bitching and moaning…we just gotta keep on keepin' on."

"Kanji-kun…" Yukiko muttered

"Hmph…big talk from someone like you, Kanji." Yosuke hummed

"Wh-What's that s'posedta mean!?" Kanji cried

"Dude, seriously, lay off with that stuff. It ain't funny" Daisuke glared

"What'dya mean?" Yosuke asked

"You know what I mean" Daisuke stated "Stop implying shit, It ain't cool man..."

"Yeah!" Chie accused "So what if Kanji-kun actually is like that?!"

"H-Hey!" Kanji cried out

"We won't think any less of you if you are" Yukiko explained

"And it sure as shit ain't cool to make fun of him for it" Kou stated

...

"You're...you're right..." Yosuke sighed "I'm...sorry, Kanji"

...

"S'cool, just...don't do it again" Kanji muttered before turning his head to Daisuke, a slight blush on his cheeks "T-Thanks, Daisuke-senpai"

"It's cool man" Daisuke waved it off

"Back to the topic at hand, we're dealing with a murderer here." Yosuke sighed "But Yu's right, we've all risked our lives to get this far…no way we'll back down. And we promised the bear, too…"

"Hey, that's right! Maybe Teddie knows something about this!" Chie suggested

"Well, since moping around won't do us any good, let's go see him!" Yosuke stated

**ELECTRONIC'S DEPARTMENT**

"Wha-why are there staff here?" Chie questioned as two employee's stood around the TV that served as the entrance to the TV World

"Now that's unusual…" Yosuke muttered before walking up to them "Hi there. Did something happen?"

"Ah, Yosuke-kun." A female employee sighed

"Great timing. Did the manager tell you anything about this?" A male employee questioned "There's been this weird mascot around our department for quite a while now…Is there some kind of campaign on today?"

"Mascot?" Yosuke questioned

"He said his name was…" The female employee tried to remember "Uh, what was it? Terry? Eddie?"

"Well, there are no customers around, so I guess it's fine…" The male employee shrugged "I better get back to my station."

"Please don't tell me…" Yosuke mumbled

"Whoa, h-he's here!" Chie cried out as she pointed to her left, noting the bear sitting in a massage chair...

"Aaaaaaaaaah, this really hits the spot" The bear hummed happily

"Wh-What the…?!" Yosuke cried out as the group ran over "I mean, how'd you…?"

"It took you guys long enough! I've been waiting." Teddie cried

"Teddie, are you okay on this side!?" Yukiko questioned

"How did you even leave your side!?" Kanji asked

"Of course I can come out. There's an exit. It just never occurred to me to do it before." Teddie shrugged "But spending time with you all sparked my curiosity about this world! I did wonder if it was a good idea, but my feet started moving before I could decide. And when I thought about it, I had nowhere to go, and it was a waste to go back. So I waited here for you.

Oh, someone asked for my name. So I told them, _I'm Teddie_."

"So that's why…" Chie mumbled

"Oh yeah, there's something we need to ask you!" Yukiko remembered "How long have you been here, Teddie? Did anyone enter the other world?"

"I stayed until the fog settled in on my side, but no one came." Teddie claimed

"You're positive? You really didn't sense a single person?" Daisuke questioned

"I just said that I didn't! I was there all by myself, like always. Hmph!" Teddie grunted

"And your nose wasn't clogged or anything…?" Yosuke asked

"Grrr, aren't you listening!? I was utterly, totally, and 100% alone! That's why I came over here!" Teddie snapped "But I can understand if you don't believe me. My senses aren't that good lately anyways…"

"I'm sure you're trying your best" Yu nodded

"Oh! Sensei's heart is radiating pure kindness…!" Teddie danced happily

"Well, it's true that the Midnight Channel was blank last night." Chie noted "And even before that…Teddie says he didn't sense anything, right? Does that mean… King Moron and this other guy were never on that side?"

"Hmm…what's going on?" Yosuke muttered

"Hey, hey, I wanna go somewhere!" Tedde piped

"Huh? Now ain't the time, dude… You seriously don't plan on going back, do you?" Kanji questioned "Where do you wanna go, anyway?"

"I want to give this to Rise-chan. It's for her." Teddie claimed as he handed Yu a pair of glasses "Rise-chan will probably back us up from now on! So I'm gonna fight alongside you with everything I got! Even if I don't have a Persona! Don't think of me as the same cute little Teddie! I'm an all-new model! I have a powerful attack, an unbeatable defense, and a winning smile! Today begins the New Legend of Teddie!"

"Wow...a new legend!" Yukiko stated excitedly

"Not that kind of legend" Chie sighed

**FOOD COURT**

"So no one was over there, you're 100% certain?" Yosuke questioned

"That's what I've been saying." Teddie repeated

"They didn't show up on the Midnight Channel either…" Chie muttered

"What's up with that?" Kanji questioned

"No clue…" Yosuke muttered "But I think we can be sure now that King Moron was never thrown into the TV"

"Then what, King Moron and the other guy was killed over here?" Chie asked "Why not throw them into a TV, like all the rest?"

"Maybe...this person had a special reason" Yu muttered "Or maybe...they never intended to kill them in the TV in the first place"

"What'dya mean?" Yosuke asked

"Maybe the culprit thought he couldn't kill any more people by throwing them into TVs." Yukiko explained "I mean, we prevented his last three attempts in a row."

"Ahhh, I get you…that could be it!" Chie nodded

"So they snuffed someone on our side this time to make sure it worked." Kanji sighed "Dammit…if that's true, then we have no way of preventing more murders unless we catch the killer!"

"We need more clues…" Chie groaned "I wonder if Rise-chan's up and around yet."

"Yeah…we'll have to put our hopes on her." Yosuke nodded

"Ugh, it's so hot" Teddie groaned before reaching around for the zipper around his head "I'm taking this thing off"

"Wait, you're not talking about your head, are you!?" Yosuke cried before batting Teddie's hand away "Cut it out! There's kids watching! Geez…they'll be scarred for life if they see an empty mascot walking around. Have a little consideration, man."

"I'm glad you're back to normal, though. Your fur's all fuzzy again!" Yukiko noted

"C-Can I feel it…?" Kanji asked

"No!" Teddie snapped

"What's the deal with you today?" Daisuke questioned

"My _deal _is, I am no longer a hollow bear!" Teddie laughed

"Meaning?" Kou asked

"I trained and trained, hoping to someday score with Chie-chan and Yuki-chan…" Teddie explained "And now I finally have an inside!"

"Yeah…good job with that." Chie groaned

"Come on! Can't we give it a rest with the whole _scoring_ thing?" Yukiko growled

"Dude, you're hollow. Taking your head off isn't gonna cool you down!" Yosuke stated

"But I just told you! I'm not hollow anymore!" Teddie cried "Agh, it's too hot. I can't stand it…"

"H-Hey!" Yosuke snapped

_**PLOP**_

"W-What the?!" Yosuke cried

"Ah...much better" Teddie sighed, the head of his costume removed

Revealing a young, handsome man with blond hair and blue eyes

"What the? He's a white guy!" Kou cried out

"Holy...shit" Kanji muttered

"Hey..." Teddie stated "You guys got any spare clothes? I'm...practically a newborn here?"

"T-Teddie? Is that really you…?" Chie questioned "Wait, did you say you're like a newborn!?

Then don't take the bottom part off!"

"You need some clothes, right? C'mon, let's go look around…" Yukiko muttered as she and Chie led Teddie away

"That's…Teddie…?" Kanji questioned "He said he's not hollow anymore… so, like…he grew himself a body in there?"

"What kinda creature would do that!?" Yosuke questioned "I mean… what _is_ he?

...

Then again, this is hardly the first bizarre thing we've seen…And I gotta admit, it's probably better than him walking around in his bear suit. Oh, hey, weren't we gonna see about talking to Rise?"

"Yeah, and that detective was supposed to come give us some answers..." Kou nodded

"I was so shocked that I lost track of what we were talking about." Yosuke sighed "Let's head over to Rise's place. As for Teddie…well, he's with the girls, so he should be fine."

...

"Well then..." Sho chuckled, watching the group from a distance "Things just got interesting..."

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Man, it's finally the season for topsicles!" Kanji hummed happily

"Dude, how many are you going to eat? You're gonna get a stomach ache." Yosuke groaned

"Sorry we're late…" Chie sighed as she, Yukiko and Teddie appeared

"How'd it take you that long to find clothes for Ted?" Yosuke questioned before noticing the former bear "Whoa…! I-Is that you, Teddie…?"

"Oui, monsieur! How do I look?" Teddie stated, showing off his fancy attire of a white frilled shirt with a rose in the pocket, jeans and brown dress shoes

"C'est magnifique" Yu hummed

"...Why did you say that?" Kou questioned

...

"I don't know" Yu stated

"Uh, don't encourage him...I have to say, it totally blew my mind, but he's Teddie alright." Chie noted "This guy had to make it a huge ordeal…everything was new to him, so it turned into a big mess. He was so excited in the women's section that he started blabbering…hey, you can't just go around doing whatever you please when you're in this form, got it?"

"Well, he can't help it. It's his first time in our world." Yukiko said

"All right…" Chie sighed towards the pouting Teddie "You don't need to get all mopey like that. I never said I won't forgive you!"

"I'm so glad! I was worried that you didn't like me anymore." Teddie smiled

"Man… If you can behave yourself, you'll be pretty cute." Chie giggled

"Is he cute…? What do you think, Kanji?" Yosuke questioned

"I will beat the living fuck out of you" Kanji warned

"Wha-no! I didn't mean it like that!" Yosuke tried to explain

"Oooh, please, everyone! Don't fight over me, baby!" Teddie said sweetly

"Shuddup! You picking a fight with me!?" Kanji snapped

"Geez…oh well." Yosuke sighed before pulling a 1,000 yen bill out of his wallet and handed it to Kanji "Here, Kanji. Get whatever ice cream you want, just share it with Teddie. We're gonna head for the tofu shop. Wait here until we get back."

"Wow, you're rich!" Teddie cried

"What the-I can't just take this from you!" Kanji said

"Think of it as the budget for a welcome back party for Teddie" Yosuke smiled

"Whoa, Yosuke, what's gotten into you? You're acting like a real senpai all of a sudden." Chie questioned "Oh, I get it. You might say differently, but you're still nice to Teddie. I'm glad you're developing into such a mature adult. Someone who doesn't let trifles bother him."

"What're you talking about?" Yosuke scoffed

"Oh, it's about Teddie's clothes, that's all." Chie shrugged as she handed Yosuke a receipt "We didn't have the money for them, so we charged the rest to you."

"Charge?" Yosuke questioned before checking the receipt "WHAT!? You put it on my account!? What the hell, Chie!? I never said you could do that!"

"What else were we supposed to do!? This stuff was expensive, even for Junes!" Chie snapped back

"You seriously charged it to me?" Yosuke groaned "Wh-Why would you do that!? You know I've been saving up to buy a motorcycle!"

"Oh, that. You don't need one." Chie shrugged

"What!?" Yosuke snapped

"C'mon baby. Stop fighting over-" Teddie tried to cut in

"Shuddup! This is your fault, y'know!" Yosuke growled "You listen here, Ted… You better take really, really, REALLY good care of that. If you put even a single tear in it, I'll make your next set of clothes out of the bear hide you took off!"

"Yo Teddie, don't let it get you down." Kanji stated as he patted the former bear on the shoulder "Let's go get some Topsicles."

"Let's go on ahead…" Yukiko suggested "I think they're going to be a while."

**MARUKYU TOFU**

"Hey...isn't that-" Daisuke muttered as they spotted a farmiliar face by the Tofu store

"Ah, I had a feeling you would come" The small person stated "Are you here ingratiate yourself with Rise Kujikawa now?"

"Geez…why did the clerk even let them charge it to someone else…?" Yosuke groaned as he joined the group "Huh? W-Wait, you're that guy we saw with Kanji…!"

"Precisely. I don't believe we've met since then-In fact, I don't believe I've ever introduced myself." He stated "My name is Naoto Shirogane. I'm investigating the multiple murders that have occurred here. Mind if I ask you a few questions on the subject? One of the latest victims, Kinshiro Morooka…he was a teacher at the school you all attend, correct?"

"S-So what?" Chie asked

"The public is focused on the fact that he is associated with the second and third victim's school… But in truth, that's irrelevant." Naoto stated "What intrigues me is the inconsistency. This Morooka person, not the other victim, Mitsuo Kubo appeared on TV, what do you make of that?"

"How are we supposed to know?" Yosuke questioned

"Well, we'll leave it at that. For my part, I'd like to solve this case as quickly as possible. I'll be keeping an eye on you all." Naoto said as he began to depart "Well then, until we meet again."

"Who is that guy…?" Yosuke muttered

"It felt like he completely saw through us…" Chie muttered "He even knew about the TV thing."

"Oh, you guys" Came the voice of Rise as her head poked out of the doorway

"Rise-chan!" Yukiko noted "Are you okay now…?"

"Yeah, I'm fine" The girl nodded "Are you all here to check up on me?"

"Well, yeah…" Yosuke nodded

"Oh, um… Do you guys have a moment?" Rise questioned "There's something I want to tell you. Follow me. My grandma's taking care of the shop today."

"Huh? Sure, okay…" Yu nodded

**SHRINE**

"I was there at home...but then when I came to, I was in the TV World..." Rise explained

"Still no real information on the killer…" Chie sighed

"We met this weird kid named Naoto a second ago…" Yosuke led on

"Oh…he's come to the shop several times. He asked me a lot about the incident." Naoto nodded "I didn't tell him anything about the other world, though. I figured it'd be a waste of time. Actually, he asked me about you guys too, but I just made up some stuff. Like, _They found me unconscious on the roof at Junes_."

"Well, I guess that's close enough to the truth." Yosuke sighed

"Um… So…" Rise tried to speak

"Hm…? What's up?" Yosuke asked

"Um…" Rise hummed "I-I really appreciate what you did for me…Thank you soooo much! I love you guys!"

"Huh…? Awww, you don't have to thank us!" Chie giggled

"Dude…she's so cute…" Yosuke blushed "Man, it's finally hitting me that you're the real deal. You really are Risette."

"Well, I know I sounded all gloomy from stress, so I thought you guys might not like me that way..." Rise explained "Do I…sound weird? Oh, but I guess it sounds more _natural _this way to the public…I'm sorry… I've practically lost touch with what the normal me is like."

"Haha, no need to apologize. Just do what comes naturally." Chie laughed

"I think everyone has multiple sides to them. You don't have to force yourself to decide on just one." Yukiko stated

"Haha, it sounds convincing when Yukiko says it." Chie chuckled

"Huh…? R-Really?" Yukiko questioned

"Thanks." Rise chuckled "I'm glad you're the first people I got to know here."

"Oh yeah, we almost forgot your present. The Teddie Glasses." Chie remembered "Um, you don't have to take them, but…well…"

"Here" Yu stated as he handed her a pair of glasses

"Senpai… Would you be struggling without my help?" Rise questioned "I can help you in that world, right? With my power…so wouldn't it be better if I joined the team?"

"Looks like we don't even have to ask her" Daisuke smiled

"These are kinda proof that you're one of us…" Yosuke nodded "They'll allow you to see clearly in the world, passed all the fog"

"I see…I do remember you all wearing glasses over there." Rise smiled "Thanks, Senpai. Now I'm part of the team, too! I'll be going to Yasogami High, starting tomorrow. But I don't have any friends yet, so don't ignore me, alright? I do owe you my life, so…you know…"

"Leave it to us." Yu smiled

"W-Wow…I didn't realize you were so cool, Senpai." Rise giggled

"This sure is a rough time to transfer here, though. The kidnappings, King Moron's death…all that, and exams are soon, too." Yosuke sighed "Exams…now I'm depressing myself. I wonder if there's any chance they'll be cancelled…"

"I doubt it. They always hold exams, rain or shine…" Chie stated

"I almost got killed by those monsters. Compared to that, exams are nothing." Rise chuckled

"Alrighty then, let's discuss the case some more tomorrow at our special headquarters." Yosuke said

"Yo. How's it going?" Kanji sighed as he approached the group "Dude...Teddie ate _five _topsicles

...

Though if you count the ones I had before, that makes six, so I still win."

"No one asked…" Yosuke stated

"We're all done talking already!" Rise smiled "Let's go, Senpai!"

"Uh…when did you get so chipper?" Kanji questioned

"Do you go to Yasogami, like Senpai? I'll be starting school there tomorrow, so I hope we get along too." Rise said happily

"Huh? Oh… cool." Kanji nodded "Uhh…what grade are you in?"

"Where's Teddie?" Yosuke asked

"He's over there, finishing up his fifth Topsicle. What are we gonna do with him?" Kanji questioned

"Well…I guess I'll take him home…" Yosuke sighed "This will be fun explaining to my parents..."

**EVENING/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

_"Good Evening, this is Niteline News. Our top story concerns the latest developments in an ongoing story. The serial murder case in Inaba has claimed a fourth and fifth victim. The news shocked local residents, who have not seen another murder in two months, and assumed the spree had reached its end. One of the deceased taught at a local high school. Since his body was found arranged in a similar manner as the last three victims…"_

"King Moron" Yu muttered as the teacher's image appeared on the screen

_"The fifth victim however brought concern, as the victim clearly died of blood loss. The victim was identified as 16 year old, Mitsuo Kubo"_

"Wait...I know him" Yu said as the image of the boy appeared onscreen "That was-"

"What's wrong? Was it someone you know?" Nanako questioned "He died?"

Yu was about to respond to her, before he noticed the scared look the girl was giving him

"It's okay, I'm here" Yu smiled at her

"I'm all right…" Nanako said as she was somewhat relieved.

_"This marks the fourth consecutive death, after Ms. Ai Ebihara's, where the target was involved with Yasogami High. Mr. Morooka was known for his strict teaching methods, and is said to have had constant friction with his students. The police will be pursuing this line of inquiry, and are planning to begin a large-scale investigation tomorrow. We now turn to our reporter at the scene for more details…"_

* * *

_"Welcome to the Velvet Room" Igor smiled "It has been quite some time since your last visit. Do not be alarmed. You are fast asleep in the real world…I have summoned you within your dreams. How are things proceeding…? Are you gradually drawing nearer to a solution to the mystery…?"_

_"Yeah..." Yu nodded_

_"Excellent." Igor nodded_

_"The season has changed, but your future is not yet closed. In time, a path will open to you." Margaret explained "You are not the only players, more will join soon, including yet another who holds the Wild Card"_

_"You mean..." Yu began_

_"Indeed...a third Wild Card" Igor smiled_

_"Wait, a _third_?" Yu questioned_

_"Indeed, we formed a contract not too long ago with another" Margaret explained_

_"Who?" Yu questioned _

_"We are not at liberty to say" Margaret said_

_"But he-" _

_"Now… your journey will soon reach its climax…" Igor smiled And as a result, many challenges-which I cannot forsee at present-await you. Most interesting…well, until we meet again…farewell."_

**JULY 11/ SCHOOL**

"I'm Noriko Kashiwagi, your new class teacher starting today." The seductive teacher smiled "You all probably know already, but now that Mr. Morooka has passed away…I'll be taking good care of you instead. Okay, why don't we start off with a moment of silence for Mr. Morooka. Close your eyes, everyone…that should be good enough."

"Oh great, Kashiwagi" Yosuke groaned as the class closed their eyes

"What's wrong?" Yu whispered

"She's on the wrong side of forty" Chie spat

"She seemed kinda young to me" Yu said

"That's what she wants you to think" Yosuke gurgled

"Okay, that should be enough" Kashiwagi stated "So our regular exams are still on track for next week. As your principal said, _It's times like these when the schedule is most important, Nori-chan_. It must be tough for you. But that's what it means to become an adult, little by little."

"I already can't stand her…" A female student groaned

"First King Moron and now Kashiwagi…? How much worse can it get?" A male student sighed

"Oh, and one more thing." Kashiwagi said with a hint of annoyance "That idol in our first-year class…Ms. Kujikawa, was it? In person, she's nothing like she seems on TV, so don't get your hopes up, mmkay?"

_"What's with her, does she seriously think she's Risette's rival or something?"_

_"She doesn't stand a chance against Risette. I mean, I heard Kashiwagi is on the wrong side of 40…"_

_"I bet King Moron would've been ecstatic to hear Risette had enrolled told me they saw him buying Rise's pinup book…"_

_"That sounds kinda pervy."_

_"He annoyed the hell out of me, but I feel bad that he got killed…"_

_"Oh, you know what? Risette was on a striptease show."_

_"Huh? A striptease!? Dude, if that was true, the paparazzi would've been all over it."_

_"I'm serious! But the reception went bad right when it was getting to the good part…It was on that Midnight Channel everyone keeps talking about."_

_"You actually believe that crap? How friggin' dense are you? Trust me, you were dreaming it…"_

"This is getting out of hand" Yu muttered

"The rumors are getting spread further" Chie sighed

"We'd better wrap this case up quick." Yosuke nodded "Anyways, let's meet up later. Don't make any plans for this afternoon."

**JUNES**

"Ugh...finals are next week" Chie groaned "It's been a while since I failed any subjects…"

"Yeah, if by _a while _you mean _all the time_." Yosuke scoffed

"Sh-Shut up! Like you've ever seen my scores!" Chie shouted

"But Chie always has above-average marks in the subjects that she doesn't fail!" Yukiko stated

"H-Hey! Why'd you tell him!?" Chie groaned "My scores just…vary! Yeah, that's it!"

"Ahaha!" Rise laughed

"R-Rise-chan, you too…?" Chie questioned

"Sorry…I'm not laughing at you." Rise giggled It's just…I thought it would take me a while to make any friends at my new school."

"Too bad we met under such awful circumstances." Chie sighed

"Oh yeah…so what do you guys think about King Moron's case?" Yosuke questioned "He didn't show up on the Midnight Channel even once."

"Neither did that other guy" Yu noted "And I pretty sure I recognized him"

"So did I!" Chie said "He was the weirdo who asked Yukiko out that one time, it wasn't too long after you showed up in town"

"Huh?" Yukiko questioned "Who?"

"You seriously don't remember?" Chie groaned

"If this person had been inside the TV, I would've sensed it." Teddie stated "My nose isn't as sharp now, but I can tell that much."

"But they found the body on a foggy day again, right?" Chie reminded "They said on the news that that crime scene was just the way it was for that announcer and Saki-senpai."

"I really wonder about the culprit's motives…" Yukiko mumbled "Why was Mr. Morooka targeted?"

"And this other guy" Daisuke said

"Hope it wasn't personal, 'cause there's way too many people out there who hated King Moron's guts" Kanji sighed

"But didn't you say it's people who get famous on TV who are targeted? If the killer's choosing targets by watching TV, I picture him as someone who doesn't know the victims at all.

I don't think it's worth trying to figure out motives for that type." Rise stated "There are too many people who hold grudges against you for no reason, even if you've never met them before."

"You sound like you speak from experience, Rise-chan…" Chie muttered "But with King Moron, he didn't appear on the Midnight Channel or the regular TV…Uurgh! I don't get this at all!"

"Man, three victims from our school…" Kanji sighed "That's gotta set off the police's alarm bells. They're not gonna leave any stones at school unturned."

"Y'know, to be honest…somewhere deep inside, I thought maybe King Moron was the killer…" Yosuke muttered "The news says that he was the third victim from Yasogami High, but we all know that's not the case. And I've heard him say more than once that so-and-so deserves to die…but now…I feel bad that I doubted him. He was a capital-A asshole, but that doesn't justify killing him…and not just King Moron…I feel sorry for all the victims…I can't forgive the killer, no matter what!"

"Well, we'll do what we can, for King Moron's sake too!" Chie nodded "At this rate, you have to figure that the killer has something to do with the school, right? So why don't we split up and-"

"That won't be necessary" A familiar voice rang

"Y-You…" Kanji muttered as Naoto approached them

"There is no need for you to examine the case of Mr. Morooka or Mitsuo Kubo any further." Naoto stated

"Wh-Why's that?" Yosuke asked

"This is a job for the Police" Naoto stated "It would be best to let them handle the case from here."

"You're talking like you're an officer..." Kou said

"I'm on this case as a special investigator, by request of the prefectual police." Naoto confirmed

"What!?" Yosuke cried

"Soon, this case will be solved, and your town will once again be its peaceful, rustic self" Naoto stated.

"All right…so why come tell us?" Yosuke asked "That's confidential info, right? Why run right here and spill it?"

"Your _game _will soon reach its end." Naoto confided to them with a tip of his hat "I felt I should at least let you know that."

"This isn't a game to us" Yu stated sternly

"You don't deny, then, that you have involved yourselves in the matter?" Naoto questioned "Well, no matter. I have no reason to say anything further."

"A game…?" Rise growled "Aren't you the one who thinks of this as a game? I don't care if you're a special investigator or an amateur sleuth…all you're doing is solving mysteries. What could you possibly know about us? You're the one who's playing a game here."

"One of the victims…" Yosuke muttered "She meant a lot to me. How could I possibly treat this like a game? Plus…we made a promise…"

"Y-Y-Yosuke…" Teddie stuttered

"A game…" Naoto mumbled "That may be quite true"

"Wh-Why so understanding all of a sudden…?" Chie asked

"Oh, I get it. I was wondering why you'd be wandering around like this when the police have a suspect…" Yosuke chuckled "What, did they get rid of you now that they have their man? Is that why you came here? You were lonely?"

"Detectives normally aren't involved with arrests. And we never harbor any special emotions regarding a case, either." Naoto claimed "Still…it is rather unfortunate that people are only attentive so long as our services are required...but then, I'm accustomed to it"

Kanji stared intently at the boy in silence

"Much about this case was perplexing, but its solution was surprisingly simple…well then, I'll be going now." Naoto sighed before leaving

"What was that about…? He just said his piece and left…?" Yosuke sighed

_PIPIPIPIPIPIPI_

"Hello?" Yu asked as he answered his phone

_"I promised you answers..." _

"Guys, it's the detective!" Yu stated to the group

"Whoa, seriously?" Yosuke asked

_"I'll give you them...meet me at the shrine in ten minutes"_

"Guys..." Yu trailed on

**SHRINE**

"You're here...good" Katsuya nodded

"Yeah, so fork over them answers already" Kanji demanded

"Ask away" Katsuya indulged

"You're a Persona user...when did you obtain yours?" Daisuke asked

"In the year 2000, so just over 11 years ago..." Katsuya claimed "Long ago, I, Maya Amano, Ulala Serizawa, Baofu, Kei Nanjo and Eriko Kirishima faced a massive danger that threatened the world, Nyarlathotep"

"Nyar...la...wha?" Yosuke asked

"Nyarlathotep..." Katsuya repeated "He represented all the darkness in the world, the side of humanity that represented divine evil...the crawling chaos...and to combat him, I, along with my allies, were gifted Persona's by Philemon, who represented the good of humanity"

"Phil...who?" Chie asked

"You haven't met Philemon?" Katsuya questioned "That's odd...Igor then?"

"Yes" Yu nodded "And Margaret"

"Wait, who's Igor?" Yosuke questioned "And...Margaret?"

"I see, Igor, Maya told me about him..." Katsuya muttered "I'm unfamiliar with Margaret though...what about...I think it was...Elizabeth?"

"I...haven't met anyone buy that name" Yu stated

"I see then...it seems that despite us sharing similar fates, our paths were wildly different" Katsuya stated

"You mentioned others" Kou reminded

"Yes, the Shadow Operatives" Katsuya nodded "We're a special branch of the National Police, designated to deal with the supernatural goings on in the world"

"No way, so there's a special Persona police force?!" Chie cried

"I suppose you can think of us like that..." Katsuya sighed "I was approached last year to join this organisation"

"So how long have you guys been around?" Rise asked

"We were just established last year, we're a spin off of S.E.E.S" Katsuya explained "The Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad"

"'Mouthful..." Kanji muttered

"It was a small club in Gekkokan High School, established by Mitsuru Kirijo" Katsuya revealed

"Kirijo...that name sounds farmiliar" Yosuke muttered

"S.E.E.S consisted of Mitsuru Kirijo along with Yukari Takeba, Akihiko Sanada, Minato Arisato, Junpei Iori, Fuuka Yamagishi, Shinjiro Aragaki, Ken Amada, Koromaru and Aigis combated Shadows to prevent The Fall"

"The Fall?" Yukiko asked

"Your typical end of the world event..." Katsuya sighed "They eventually succeeded, but lost Arisato-san and Aragaki-san in the process..."

"Whoa, when was this?" Kou asked

"Two years ago" Katsuya explained "After that, the Shadow Operatives were established and they actively seeked out all known Persona users...I, along with Nanjo-san were the only ones who headed their call, I figured, seeing as I was already a Police Officer..."

"So...you're here because this Kirijo person knew about the TV World?" Yu asked

"Correct" Katsuya nodded "One of us, Junpei Iori...fell asleep on the train and ended up in Inaba, he ended taking refuge in an Inn"

"An Inn?" Yukiko questioned "Was it my family's inn?"

"Possibly" Katsuya nodded "He witnessed the Midnight Channel and the following day, asked around about it, apparently, a gas station attendant told him all about it..."

"A Gas Station Attendant..." Teddie muttered

"He knew that Shadow's had to be involved so he reported it back to us...I requested to show my worth, plus I had adequate cover as a detective, so I was selected to observe Inaba and the Midnight Channel"

"So..." Kanji muttered

"You're one I don't recognize" Katsuya noted as he spotted the young blond boy "Did you acquire a new Persona user?"

"I'm Teddie!" The former bear claimed

"Teddie?...That voice, the bear?" Katsuya questioned

"Yeah, we don't really get it ourselves" Yosuke sighed

"Interesting..." Katsuya noted "He changed form?"

"Yep" Yukiko nodded

"I see...just what are you?" Katsuya asked as he approached Teddie

"Hey, no touching!" Teddie stated as he backed away

"Hey, back off!" Chie demanded as she stepped in front of Teddie

"Ah, my apologies" Katsuya apologized as he back away "It was not my intent to offend..."

"I have one more thing to ask" Yu stated "Is Naoto Shirogane a member of the Shadow Operatives?"

"Shirogane? No" Katsuya denied "Though we did do some research into..._him_, it was certainly surprising when we checked his medical files..."

"What'dya mean?" Kanji questioned

"Nothing" Katsuya said with a shake of his head "Well, I gave you your answers, now I wish to ask you a question...

"What?" Yosuke asked

"Do you know of a boy named Sho Minazuki?" Katsuya questioned

"Name doesn't ring a bell..." Yosuke denied

"'Never heard of him..." Kanji shrugged

"I see...how unfortunate" Katsuya sighed

"Why?...Wait, do you think he's..." Chie began "Y'know...the culprit?"

"It's...possible" Katsuya nodded

"Whoa, wait, you guys have a suspect?!" Yosuke cried

"Again, it's possible, we have nothing to go on but a name and possible motive" Katsuya informed them "Well then...I'll be taking my leave now"

"Wait!" Yosuke cried out "So...does this mean you're going to help us from now on?"

"I will assist when needed, but for the sake of keeping up appearances, we will remain seperate, we never know where this killer has eyes" Katsuya explained "Do not consider me a member of your Investigation Team, nor you to be members of the Shadow Operatives"

"So what you're saying is...you're not gonna help" Kanji grunted "Typical cop"

"I will report to you again should another kidnapping take place..." Katsuya stated before finally taking his leave

"So...he's not gonna be any help" Yu muttered

"Yeah, but at least we have a name now" Rise reminded "Sho Minazuki..."

"Yeah, but the guy said himself that it's nothing more than a guess" Yosuke stated

"Well, it's better than nothing" Chie sighed

"Let's just call it a day" Kou sighed

"He's right" Daisuke nodded "There's nothing we can do now, come on, we got school in the morning..."

**JULY 12/ SCHOOL**

"Never thought I'd say this, but I miss King Moron" Yosuke groaned

"It gets worse" Chie groaned "Exams are next week...Yu-kun, do you want to study today?"

"Sure" He nodded

"Oooh, _studying_" Yosuke chuckled "Is that what they call it now?"

"Huh?! You dolt!" Chie snapped with a smack on Yosuke's head "It wasn't innuendo! We're actually going to study"

"Okay, okay!" Yosuke groaned as he rubbed the sore spot on his cranium "Dude, control your woman"

"Don't badmouth my girlfriend" Yu stated flatly as he smacked the exact same spot

"Ow!" Yosuke cried as the two left

"Yosuke?" Yukiko questioned as she walked beside him

"Yeah?" He grumbled

"Do you know if Chie likes anyone?" Yukiko asked

"H-How should I know?!" Yosuke panicked

"Well, I was wondering if I should tell her about Ichijo-kun" Yukiko explained "You know, how he likes her"

"I-I don't think that's a good idea" Yosuke suggested "I don't think Chie likes him..."

"Hmm? Are you sure?" Yukiko asked "She seems happier recently..."

"That's probably for a different reason..." Yosuke explained

"I'm not so sure...maybe I'll help Ichijo-kun" Yukiko muttered to herself

"W-Wait!" Yosuke cried out, but the girl had already tuned out

**JULY 13/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Chie-senpai says the steak bowl here is great." Kanji said happily "And hey, she's the expert."

"That she is" Yu nodded before noticing an approaching officer

"You're Kanji Tatsumi, right? I'd like to have a word with you." The officer stated

"Huh? Yeah, well I wouldn't." Kanji told him off

"Come with me." The officer demanded

"On what charges?" Yu questioned "You don't even have a warrant"

"Senpai..." Kanji muttered

"Ah...you're the kid that Tatsumi's been hanging out with lately." The officer noted "I see. So you're in cahoots..."

"So what if we hang out? What's it to you?" Kanji growled

"You know there's been a group of teenage bullies lurking around here, don't you?" The officer questioned "We got a tip saying you've been threatening a child at the hill."

"Threatening? Child...?" Kanji questioned, before remembering the child he met on the hill and handed a stuffed bunny to replace his friends lost one "Oh, him."

"Hmph, so you admit it. Not a shred of remorse, either." The Officer stated coldly "You two are going to have to come with us down to the station."

"Now wait a sec! Senpai has nothin' to do with this!" Kanji roared

"Oh, Mister. What are you doing?" Came a small voice, Yu and Kanji then recognized as the small boy they were just talking about

"You know these boys, kid?" The officer asked "Can you tell me how you know them? I don't think they're being straight with me."

"The hell are you telling that kid!? You call yourself a cop!?" Kanji snapped

"Did this boy ask you for anything? For instance, did he claim he lost his money?" The officer asked

"You lost your money, Mister?" The boy asked "You can have some of mine!"

"Just as I thought..." The officer muttered

"That ain't..." Kanji tried to get out

"Oh, but I came today to give you the cookies Mom baked as thanks." The boy stated, holding up a bag "I was going to sneak in and leave them at Tatsumi Textiles, but here you are."

"_Thanks_?Thanks for what?" The officer questioned

"He gave me a doll! He's real good! He made it!" The boy smiled "And he made more for Mom and my friends"

"Dolls!? And you're saying Tatsumi made them?" The officer questioned "What a load of...there's no way you're getting me to believe that."

"Believe it" Yu stated flatly

...

"Awright, listen up, punks...there ain't any lying about it." Kanji sighed "I made the kid some dolls. What with the ones for his friends and his mom, it was eight all told! And lemme warn you... They're so cute, they'll give you diabetes-the instantly fatal kind! So what, you want me to teach you how to make 'em!? Huh!?"

"What...?" The officer questioned

"You 'bout to say that ain't like me, right? Go ahead and laugh, dammit! Like I care. I'm used to being pointed at." Kanji shouted "And what's most important is, I ain't gonna make this kid or Senpai a liar! Hey you! That button's falling off! I'm gonna sew it back on, y'hear!?"

"Officer...?" Came the voice of Kanji's mother "What are you doing with my Kanji?"

Oh-Well, Ma'am, there've been several cases of bullying around here, so..." The Officer listed

"Kanji had nothing to do with them." Kanji's mother said sternly

"Mom..." Kanji muttered

"He would never do such a thing. He may be stupid and short-tempered, but he's a strong and gentle child." Kanji's Mother informed him "Why, just the other day, he showed me his dolls, and he told me I can put them up for sale..."

"Y-You old bag! What're you saying!?" Kanji cried

"I-I apologize." The officer bowed "If you'll...excuse us..."

"M-Mom..." Kanji mumbled "You'd believe me over the police...?"

"You would never do such a thing. A mother knows." She smiled "I need to prepare dinner now...don't go stuffing yourself at Aiya before coming home."

"I..." Kanji sniffed

"Mister...are you crying?" The young boy asked

"N-N-No! I ain't crying!" Kanji defended as he vigorously rubbed his eyes "This is...snot! I got a cold! You wanna catch it!? Huh!?"

...

"Need a tissue?" Yu asked

**JULY 14/ SCHOOL**

"Y-You want to help?!" Kou cried

"That's right!" Yukiko smiled

"H-How did you even find out I like her?" Kou questioned

"Nagase told me" She explained

"That bastard!" Kou cursed

"So I want to help" Yukiko nodded

"Why? I mean, not that I don't appreciate it" Kou muttered "But why do you want to help?"

"Truth is...I want you to help me too" Yukiko stated "You see, I like Yu-kun..."

"You do?" Kou questioned

"And since you and Narukami are close..." Yukiko stated "I think we could help each other out"

"I'm...nowhere near as close to him as Yosuke, but...yeah" Kou smiled "I...I appreciate it"

"Oh, this is so good" Yukiko smiled

**JULY 15/ GYM**

"So...do you like someone?" Kou asked

"Huh? Why'd you ask?" Yu panicked slightly

"Come on man" Kou smiled "You can tell me"

"Even if I did...I couldn't say..._really_, I couldn't" Yu gulped

"Come onnnnnnn..." Kou irked on "You do don't you?"

...

"No, I-"

"I knew it!" Kou stated

"Kou, listen..." Yu sighed "I...I'm-"

"Yukiko, huh?"

"What?" Yu questioned

"Come on man, it ain't a big deal, everyone likes Yukiko" Kou smiled "Well...'cept me of course, you know I got my eyes on someone else..."

"Kou..." Yu muttered

"So...you want help? I can set you two up" Kou chuckled

...

"Just..." Yu sighed before beginning to slump away

"Dude?" Kou questioned "What's up? No need to be embarrassed..."

"Leave it..." Yu sighed before finally departing

**AIYA**

"Do I like anyone?" Chie gaped "W-Why do you ask?"

"Oh?" Yukiko muttered "Do you?"

"Why does that matter!?" Chie cried

"You're awfully defensive" Yukiko noted

"It's nothing!" Chie stated "That's enough! Let's order now!"

"Okay, okay" Yukiko giggled

**LATER**

"Embarrassed?" Kou asked "That's weird, that's how Narukami acted too..."

"Really? Then maybe they both feel the same way" Yukiko smiled

"That's good right?" Kou questioned

"It seems so..." Yukiko nodded "But we don't to weird them out, so let's drop it for a whole"

"Yeah" Kou nodded "I don't want anything to ruin this chance..."

**JULY 16/ DRAMA ROOM**

"Yumi?" Yu questioned as she entered the room, drama club having just ended and the other student's left

"Oh...hi" Yumi mumbled with a small sad smile

"Are...you okay?" Yu asked

"Yeah...I'm just...I just got back from the hospital...Dad...died"

"Yumi..." Yu muttered "I'm...so sorry"

...

"I hated him..." Yumi stated "Even to the end...but I thanked him, for bringing me into the world...he told me that he and Mom named me Yumi because it means..._to bear fruit_...and that he wanted me to live long..."

"I see..." Yu muttered

"I see now..." Yumi muttered "And my head's finally clear...so I want to say something"

"Are you okay?" Yu asked "You're-"

"Yu-kun...I know this is out of the blue" Yumi interrupted "But...I love you"

...

"Yumi..." Yu muttered in shock

"Yu-kun..." She addressed as she stood infront of him "Do you...feel the same?"

The instant she asked that, the boy cringed and looked away, she knew what the answer was. Her heart breaking even further once he confirmed it with his words...

"No" Yu said softly with a sigh as he closed his eyes

...

"I see..." She mumbled

"I'm sorry" Yu stated as he attempted to look her in the eyes "I just...I'm...already with someone..."

"Do you love her?" Yumi asked as she turned away

"I do..." Yu nodded

"And her...does she love you?" Yumi questioned softly

"She does..." Yu stated

"She can't love you as much as I do..." Yumi muttered

"I'm sorry Yumi, but yes she does" Yu said "We love each other, more than anything..."

...

"I see...how nice" Yumi sighed before making her way to the door "I have to go"

"Yumi, wait!" Yu cried out but the girl had already ran out, her sobs audible as she ran down the hall. He cried out again as he ran out of the classroom and into hall but the girl was already out of sight "Shit...Shit!"

"Yo..." Came the astonished voice of Daisuke "What was that about...?"

"I just rejected her..." Yu sighed as he buried his head in his hands

"Whoa..." Daisuke gaped "You...Yumi liked you? Geez...why'd you reject her?"

"Because I don't...feel that same" Yu groaned

"Well...suppose it was right" Daisuke hummed "Put...seems like it came of kind of harsh..."

"She...pretty much said that no one could love me like her..." Yu sighed "Shit, why am I even saying this?"

"It's good to get it off your chest..." Daisuke explained

"Yeah...suppose it is" Yu nodded "I told her what she said wasn't true..."

...

"So...you're saying there's someone out there you love?" Daisuke questioned

"I...I'm..." Yu sighed "Can we...stop there?"

"Sure Bro..." Daisuke nodded "Sure..."

**AIYA**

"Narukami rejected her?" Kou questioned

"Yeah, you should have seen it man..." Daisuke sighed "She ran off crying..."

"Geez..." Kou whistled "So why'd he do it?"

"Turn her down? He didn't feel the same way" Daisuke informed him "I...actually think he turned her down because he likes someone else"

"Wha?!" Kou cried out "Why's that?"

"Well, he said that she told him no one could love her like she does, and he told her that wasn't true" Daisuke explained

"Whoa...I was suspicious, but I guess that confirms it" Kou nodded "Yup, he definately likes Yukiko!"

"Really? I didn't really peg her as Narukami's type" Daisuke questioned "Maybe it's Rise..."

"Nah, bro, I questioned him about her yesterday, he got all panicky" Kou explained

"Hmm...maybe" Daisuke nodded "A lot of people like her, suppose Narukami's no different"

**EVENING/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

_"Whoa..."_

"Yeah" Yu sighed

_"She said she loved you and everything?"_

"Yeah...and that no one could love me like her" Yu explained "I told her it wasn't true"

_"How are you feeling?" Chie asked_

"Like shit" Yu admitted

_"I can't believe this...a girl I don't even know told my boyfriend she loved him? What the hell..."_

"I'm not feeling great about it either, Chie" He groaned

_"Oh...sorry"_

"I...I'm gonna have to do it again at some point"

_"Huh?"_

"Yukiko..."

_"Oh..."_

"Listen, I'm gonna go bed" Yu sighed

_"Okay, just remember, _I _love you"_

"I know, I love you too" Yu smiled before he hung up

**JULY 17/JUNES**

"More TV Coverage?!" Yosuke cried

"Yeah, it looks like that camera crew that covered the basketball team back in April is coming back" Daisuke stated

"This is bad..." Kanji groaned "What are they coming back to cover?"

"No idea..." Daisuke sighed "But their ratings are failing so I'm guessing they'll cover whatever they can"

"Those idiots!" Chie cried "Don't they realise what they're doing?!"

"No, they don't" Yu sighed "And that's the problem, they don't know the link between regular TV and the Midnight Channel..."

"Yeah...all we can do it wait and watch" Yosuke sighed "At least this time, we'll have a headstart"

"Hey, yeah!" Chie smiled "They'll be filming right beside us, we can warn people right away!"

"Hell yeah!" Kanji cheered "We'll save them before they're even in danger!"

"Alright!" Yosuke nodded "But we came here to study, we should, exams are in just two days..."

"Ugh..." Chie groaned

**JULY 18/DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"I'm home." Dojima stated

"Oh, welcome back!" Nanako greeted, a piece of paper in her small hand "Um, Dad...!"

"Later, Nanako..." He sighed

"B-But, this paper..." She mumbled before Dojima took it

"_Scheduling of Parent-Teacher Interviews_? A survey, huh...?" He sighed

...

"Fine...It's fine...It's fine, okay!?" Nanako snapped "You don't have to write anything! You don't have to come! It's just another case to you, right? It's more work, isn't it? Bad people and everyone else are more important to you than me, huh!? Big Bro told me that your real family are the ones who love you...you're don't love me...you're not my _real_ Dad!"

And with that, the little girl stormed away and bolted out of the door

"Na-Nanako! Wait!" Dojima cried out

"Hurry, go after her!" Motoko cried out as she went for her shoes

"R-Right!" Dojima nodded as Yu also slipped on his shoes and ran out after the girl

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Nanako!" Yu yelled out as he ran down the street "Nanako!"

"Yu!" Came the voice of Yosuke, running towards him with the rest of the gang trailing behind him "I ran into Dojima-san at Junes, and he told me what happened."

"You coulda just asked!" Chie snapped

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry" Yu apologised "I wasn't thinking"

"We got a call from Yosuke-kun." Yukiko said "I'm sure if we all look, we'll find her."

"Hey, do you know what kinda places she might've gone?"

_"When Mom was alive, we'd go to the Riverbank and just watch the river...we'd have picnics and just...be happy"_

"Samegawa..." Yu stated "The Samegawa Riverbank"

"Samegawa...?" Yosuke asked "Alright. Yu, you head straight there. That's our best bet. The rest of us'll split up and look around. If anyone finds anything, give the others a ring, okay?"

"I will!" Yu nodded before running off

**SAMEGAWA**

"Nanako..." Yu panted, his breath running short, before he finally spotted the girl on the foyer above the riverbank, he quickly pulled out his phone

_"Yu, did you find Nanako!?"_

"I did" He nodded "She's at the Samegawa Riverbank

_"Could you... talk to her?"_

"Why me?"

_"I'm not her _real father_" Dojima echoed "You should go pick her up. She'll listen to you..."_

"That's not true" Yu stated

_"No...it is" Dojima sighed "As long as she's okay..." _

...

"Alright" Yu nodded before he approached the girl

"Big Bro?" She questioned

"We were looking all over for you" Yu sighed as he wrapped the girl in a hug "We were all worried sick, especially your dad..."

"Liar..." Nanako muttered

"No, it's true" He stated, kneeling down to the girls level "He practically searched the whole town looking for you"

"He was looking for me...? Did Dad say anything about the river?" Did he forget about Mom...?" Nanako asked "He never talks about her...I wanna see Mom..."

Yu proceeded to wrap the girl in his arms as she was struggling not to cry...

"I can't imagine what it's like for you Nanako..." Yu muttered softly to her "To go through all this...you're so brave, little sis...you're so much braver than your big bro"

"Dad must've forgotten Mom." Nanako whimpered "There aren't any pictures of her at home. He probably threw them all away...is he going to throw me away, too...?"

"Never" Yu softly whispered

"Nanako..." Dojima muttered softly as he approached the two

"See...I told you" Yu smiled "he was looking for you..."

"I..." Nanako muttered before sobbing into Yu's chest "I wanna go home!"

"Yeah..." Yu nodded before picking her up

...

"Yeah..." Dojima muttered as he slowly walked away

"Uncle..." Yu tried to ger his attention

"Just..." Dojima sighed "You're her family...not me..."

"Uncle!" Yu called out to him, but he didn't respond

**JULY 19/ SCHOOL**

"Thank god she was safe" Yukiko muttered

"Yeah" Yu sighed "She hasn't talked to Uncle since she got back though..."

"Family issues man" Yosuke sighed "Anyway...we need to clear our heads, it's exam week"

"Yeah!" Chie cried "Okay Exams, here I come!"

**JULY 23/ SCHOOL**

"I hate exams..."

"It's allllllll over!" Yosuke cried but then yawned "I'm so sleepy"

"Yuck! Don't yawn in my face like that!" Chie gurgled before turning to Yukiko "Hey, for the third question on the English test, which phrase did you choose?"

"Um…I went with _used to_." Yukiko answered

"I was wrong again…" Chie sighed

"So much for Chie going abroad. Heck, why leave Inaba? You have so much right here!" Yosuke chuckled

"Ooooh, you're so annoying!" Chie growled

"Yo…" Kanji greeted as he and Rise entered the room "No more encores…I mean…Hi everyone…"

"Whoa, more losers!?" Yosuke asked

"What do I need to know English for!? I can always ask for a translator!" Rise groaned before asking Yu "How did you do, Senpai?"

"My pen was on fire" Yu smirked

"Wow, you're amazing…" Rise said affectionately

"Enough about the exams already…" Kanji grumbled "What's going on with the murder case?"

"Hm…why don't we head to our special headquarters? We haven't been there in a while." Yosuke suggested

_"COME ON, GET OUTTA HERE!"_

"Whoa, the hell?!" Kanji cried

"Was that...Adachi-san?" Yu questioned as he recognized the voice of the detective

_"You can't do this! We have a permit!"_

_"Not to do this!" Came the voice of Adachi once again "You'll all under arrest!"_

_"Cheese it, boys!"_

_"Get back here!"_

"The hell is going on?" Yosuke questioned

"Now, now, children, let the police do their work" Kashiwagi smiled "You don't want to get into the way of a big strong policeman do you?"

**JUNES**

"I'm kinda bummed..." Chie sighed "Detective Suou gave us a suspect, this Minazuki guy and we can't even do anything about it, we don't know where he is or even what he looks like"

"So…we gotta sit on our thumbs." Kanji groaned

"For pete's sake..." Came a familiar groan

"Hey, it's Adachi-san!" Yosuke pointed out

"Oh, hey kids" Adachi smiled

"Adachi-san, what was that about at our school?" Yu questioned

"Oh, you heard that, huh?" Adachi sighed "Well you know how that TV crew that filmed the basketball team back in April?"

"Yeah?" Kanji questioned

"Well supposedly they got a warrant to come back and film some more...but it wasn't them" Adachi explained "It was that News of the Weird show that were here to film the Amagi Inn"

"Those people?!" Yukiko angrily snapped

"Yeah, they wanted to film the school since four of the victims went there, they wanted to call it _The Death Magnet, Yaso-Inaba High! The crawling grounds for the murder victims! Who will be next! _The school said they didn't sign up for this so when the crew refused to leave, they called the police"

"Those bastards, don't they have any respect...?" Daisuke growled

"Well, they're under arrest now" Adachi sighed "Sorry, I gotta head"

"Man..." Chie growled "Those dirty bastards!"

"Trying to exploit the Inn is one thing, but to paint the school like that..." Yukiko grumbled

"It's sickening..." Yu stated

...

"Let's change the subject" Chie sighed "How's Teddie doing?"

"Check it out" Yosuke said with a point of his thumb, gesturing over to Teddie who was in his bear outfit, holding balloons and entertaining children "I let him stay at my place. In return, he's now our official store mascot."

"Aaah! So he's hiding in plain sight. Reverse psychology, huh?" Kanji smirked "Man…he looks like one happy bear…"

"He kept saying that he didn't wanna go back. So I made him a deal." Yosuke shrugged "Now, since I've got nothing better to do…I'm gonna go bug him."

"Oooh, I wanna go too!" Chie giggled

"C-Can I…feel his soft fur…?" Kanji asked as the group departed, save for Yu and Rise

"Senpai?" Rise asked "Now that I'm getting the hang of school, I want to go out more and see the sights. But I tend to get recognized everywhere I go, so I'm a little nervous about going out on my own…and you seem like the type of guy who knows all the cool spots in town..."

"Sure, I'll show you around." Yu nodded

"Really? Woohoo!" Rise cheered

...

"Hey, Ichijo-kun?" Yukiko whispered to Kou

"Yeah?" Kou asked

"I have a plan" She stated

"Uh...yeah?" Kou egged on

"Tomorrow, I'm going to tell Yu-kun how I feel about him" Yukiko smiled

"W-Whoa, seriously?!" Kou cried

"Yeah, I'm going to tell him tomorrow at the Tatsuhime Shrine" Yukiko confirmed "After we leave there, we'll run into Chie, just outside Aiya"

"How do you know she'll be there?" Kou asked

"She always goes on this day of the week" Yukiko explained "She'll ask us what's going on, I'll tell her I'm together with Yu-kun and she'll be so thrilled for us that you'll come in and completely sweep her off her feet!"

...

"Don't completely agree with your terminology" Kou sighed but then smiled "But...yeah! This will finally be our chance. I'll finally be with Chie and you'll be with Yu!"

They didn't realize how wrong they could be...

**JULY 24/ SHRINE**

"Are you going to wish for something?" Yukiko asked

"Yeah..." Yu nodded as he threw a 500 yen coin in the offering box "For...someone"

"O-Oh" Yukiko blushed "I'm wishing for everyone's health. For Chie, for you, for the others... And everyone at the inn, too. And...I'm wishing to become a woman worthy of you..."

"Yukiko..." Yu quietly sighed, he knew it would happen today...

...

"I'm going to leave Inaba..." Yukiko stated "But just for a little while, I want to see the world...when I get back...then I'll decide what I want to do

...

Finally, I wish for everyone to be able to smile together...let's begin our prayer."

Yu silently nodded before beginning his prayer beisde her

"Thank you. I think it's because of you that I realize this." Yukiko smiled as the two stopped praying "Because you were always by my side

...

Yu-kun...for a while now, I-"

"I don't love you"

...

"W-What?" Yukiko questioned

"I'm...sorry, I'm sorry Yukiko" Yu apologized "But...I know I've been leading you on, I'm sorry, I didn't mean too...I'm...I'm so sorry Yukiko...I just don't feel that way about you"

...

"I...I see..." Yukiko muttered

"I...I'm..." Yu choked "I'm so sorry..."

"Yes...you said" Yukiko mumbled as her head dipped down "I...I have to go"

"Yukiko, please wait!" Yu cried out as he began to run after her, but he ultimately had no resolve to chase after her

...

"Yukiko?" Chie asked as she spotted her crying friend running passed her "Yukiko!"

The girl didn't answer and continued to run on

"Yukiko, what's wrong?!" Chie cried out as she ran after her

"Hey, Chie!" Kou greeted as he stepped out in front of her

"Not now, Ichijo!" Chie shouted as she continued to run

"W-Wait!" Kou cried as he ran after her

"I said not now!" Chie yelled

"Please, wait!" Kou shouted as he grabbed the back of her jacket

"Let go of me!" Chie demanded as Yukiko ran further and further away

"I have something to tell you!" Kou said

"Damn it!" Chie roared as Yukiko disappeared out of sight

"I need to tell you-"

"What!?" Chie demanded

"I...I have to tell you-" Kou stated, slightly stunned by her tone

"Something's wrong with Yukiko, I don't have time for this!" Chie stated as she began to run away again but Kou grabbed her hand and prevented her from getting away

"I love you!" Kou yelled to the heavens

...

"I don't have time for your stupid feelings Ichijo!" Chie snapped

"W-Wha?" Kou gaped

"Let go of me!" Chie shouted

"But...I..." Kou muttered, agape "Do you...love me to-"

"No!" Chie roared as she smacked his hand away

"But...I love you..." Kou mumbled

"I don't love you!" Chie snapped before lowering her voice "I don't...and because of you, Yukiko got away!"

...

"I...I-"

"Just...forget about it!" Chie snapped

...

"Fine...I'll never bring it up again" Kou muttered before dashing off in the other direction

...

She felt guilty, watching Kou run away, part of her felt relieved as rejecting him was finally out of the way, but she lost track of Yukiko and she didn't even know why she was upset

But when she saw Yu jogging towards her, she knew he was involved

"What...happened?" Chie asked

...

"I rejected her" He stated flatly

"Oh god..." Chie sighed

"And...Kou?" Yu aked

"I didn't just reject him, I pretty much destroyed his heart..." Chie said

...

"Well...dunno about you, but I feel like shit..." Yu grunted "I'll...go after Kou...explain it all, you go after Yu-"

"No"

"Huh?"

"I...can't" Chie said flatly before breaking out into a so b"I can't face her right now..."

"Okay, it's okay" Yu stated as he wrapped his arms around her "It's okay...I'm the one to blame"

"No...no you're not" Chie sobbed into his chest

...

"Yu-senpai?" Came the approaching voice of Rise "Is...is Chie-senpai okay?"

"No...neither of us are right now..." Yu muttered as he stared intently at Chie's sobbing face

Rise knew that look could only mean one thing

"Damn..." She mumbled as she walked away, the object of her affection was already taken...

**KIRIJO HOME**

_"It's a pleasure to speak to you again, Ms Kirijo"_

"The feeling is mutual Mr. Nanjo" Mitsuru smiled

_"Though I take it that you didn't call up for a friendly chat..."_

"Indeed..." Mitsuru nodded "I called you because you're one of our most experienced Persona users"

_"I'm old, why don't you just come out and say it" Kei Nanjo laughed _

"You took place in the SEBEC corporation incident of 1996..." Mitsuru stated "And you're the only partipant in that incident who joined the Shadow Operatives..."

_"The others wanted to move on with their lives...can't necessarily blame them"_

"We fear an ongoing incident may require all the manpower we can muster..." Mitsuru explained

_"So basically, you're asking for my help?"_

"I know nowadays you're a wealthy stockbroker and prefer to fight the lackeys in the stock market than Shadows"

_"Back in my day, it was demons"_

"Yes, quite" Mitsuru nodded "But I ask of you...please assist us in some form for the upcoming battle"

_"It would be rude of me to say no, wouldn't it?" Nanjo laughed "Of course I'll-HRK!"_

"Nanjo?" Mitsuru questioned

_"Who...Who are yo-"_

_**SHUNK**_

"Nanjo, what's wrong?!" Mitsuru cried out

_"Helllllllo" Came a voice that most certainly was not Nanjo's from the other line "I'm sorry, Kei Nanjo is a little busy right now, so he won't be joining us for the rest of his life"_

"Who is this?!" Mitsuru demanded "What did you do?!"

_"Didn't you get the joke?" The voice groaned "I. KILLED. HIM"_

"You..." Mitsuru growled "Who are you?!"

_"Oh, I think you know" Came the oily voice from the other side of the phone "A little bird tells me you've been looking for me"_

...

"Minazuki..."

_"Correct-a-mundo" He stated with a laugh_

"You bastard, why'd you kill him?!" Mitsuru roared

_"Oh you know, boredom, I've been a bit stressed out lately" Sho shrugged "And, oh yeah, because he worked for _you_"_

"You...scum" Mitsuru growled "How did you even know he was a Shadow Operative?!"

_"Just because you know nothing about me, doesn't mean I know nothing about you" Sho laughed "You know how long I had to hide here? Waiting for him for either him or you to make a call so I could time my kill and we could have this little talk? I think I deserve some kind of reward for being this patient..."_

"You bastard" Mitsuru seethed "All this...for Ikutsuki!?"

_"Ikutsuki?! Hah!" Sho laughed "Maybe it was that at first, but now I have a whole other reason for wanting you dead..."_

"What is it you want?" Mitsuru growled

_"You...and everyone else, dead at my feet" Sho chuckled "And trust me...it will happen"_

"You...I will hunt you down...we all will!" Mitsuru screamed

_"Then come and find me" Sho smiled "I'll save you some trouble, I'm in Inaba"_

"Ina-" Mitsuru muttered

_"So come on...bring all your friends, pack a lunch, make a day of it" Sho laughed "Because it's time to play the game"_

_**CLICK**_

"Kikuno!"

"Ma'am?!" Kikuno cried as she entered, stunned by her masters tone

"Get Akihiko on a flight to Japan right now! Get everyone ready! We're heading to Inaba!" Mitsuru shouted

**JULY 25/ SCHOOL**

"Yo..." Daisuke muttered as he sat next to Kou "Something up?"

"Yeah..." Kou muttered "I told Chie how I feel"

"You did?!" Daisuke cheered "Oh, finally! About freak-"

"She rejected me"

...

"Shit..." Daisuke said, his jaw agape

"Oh she didn't just reject me, I believe her exact words were _I don't have time for your stupid feelings Ichijo_"

"Dude...that is not cool" Daisuke grumbled

"Yeah..." Kou mumbled "Needless to say, I'm a bit...destroyed, emotionally..."

"That...sucks, bro" Daisuke sighed "But she had no right to say that stuff..."

"Oh, Ichijo-kun, Nagase-kun" Yukiko muttered as she spotted the boys

"Hey, Yukiko" Daisuke nodded towards her

"Hey..." Kou greeted quietly

"I...take it, it didn't go well" Yukiko noted

"No...no it did not..." Kou sighed

"I'm sorry..." Yukiko muttered

"What's going on?" Daisuke asked

"Me and Yukiko had a whole plan worked out, I was to get together with Chie, she was going to get together with Yu..."

"You..." Daisuke trailed

"Yu-kun rejected me" Yukiko revealed

"He did?" Daisuke questioned "'The hell?! I thought he liked you"

"So did I, but..." Yukiko mumbled

"This is just..." Daisuke growled "I need to talk to them"

"Daisuke, just leave it" Kou sighed

"Hell no!" Daisuke snapped "For leading Yukiko on like that and for Satonaka's behavior, I can't let it go!"

...

"Then I'm...going with you" Kou stated "Not for Chie...to find out why Yu did that to Yukiko..."

"And I need to know why Chie behaved that way" Yukiko added

* * *

"Still feel shitty?" Chie asked as the two stood outside the gym

"Yep..." Yu nodded "I was actually a little bit sick with guilt..."

...

"We're horrible friends, aren't we?" Chie sighed

"Yeah...yeah we are" Yu sighed too as he buried his face in his hands "I practically broke Yukiko's heart..."

"I stomped all over Ichijo's..." Chie sniffed

"And yet...part of me is...god, I can't even say it" Yu groaned

"Glad?" Chie asked

"Yeah..." Yu muttered

"Yeah...most of me feels like shit for doing that Ichijo, but a small part of me is glad he'll finally let it all go..."

...

"We're not just horrible friends, we're horrible people" Yu admitted

"We feel like shit, so we're not all bad..." Chie said with a small chuckle "I...wish you were a little less blunt with Yukiko though..."

"Believe me, so do I..." Yu groaned

...

"Hey..." Chie walked over to him and caressed his cheek "I'm sick of seeing you down..."

"Can't really help it at this point..." Yu said with a small chuckle

"Just remember...even if you lose everyone else...I'll always be here" She smiled before placing her lips to his

"There you are!" Came Daisuke's voice "You two-What the..."

The two broke their kiss with a gasp, and turned to the shocked faces of Daisuke, Yukiko and Kou

It was time to face the music

"Guys..." Yu mumbled

"The...The hell is this?" Kou muttered as he walked towards them "Were you two just...kissing?"

"What the hell is going on here?!" Daisuke demanded

...

"Yu..." Chie mumbled

"I know..." He nodded

"Hey, I asked you, what's going on!" Kou snapped

"Kou...Yukiko" Yu muttered "Me and Chie...are dating...we-"

_**SMACK**_

"You bastard!" Kou roared as he smacked Yu directly in the eye, knocking him down

"Kou!" Daisuke shouted

"Hey!" Chie roared before bringing her knee forward, smacking Kou right in the nose

"Chie!" Yukiko gasped

"Yu, You fucker!" Kou roared, his nose bloody from the knee as he was held back by Daisuke

"Yu-kun!" Chie cried out as she ran over to him as he was still down

"You fucking asshole! You stole her!" Kou roared "You didn't help me out because you wanted her all to yourself!"

"That's enough!" Daisuke commanded as he tried to pull Kou away

"Chie..." Yukiko muttered as she looked at the pair "Is it true...are you and Yu-kun..."

The guilty gaze Chie gave her was the only answer she needed

"Oh..." Yukiko muttered softly as her head dipped down

"Yukiko..." Chie muttered softly before her friend began to run away "Yukiko, wait!"

"What the hell, what's going on!?" Kanji shouted as he ran over to the scene, noticing the downed Yu "Senpai, are you okay!?"

"I'm fine..." Yu groaned, holding his bruised eye

"What the hell happened?!" Yosuke cried out as he and Rise ran over

"Bastard!" Kou roared as he wiggled free from Daisuke and ran towards Yu

"Hey, back off!" Kanji shouted as he tackled Kou away from Yu

"Everybody, just stop!" Rise cried

"Kanji, let him go!" Daisuke demanded as he tried to pull the blond boy off Kou

"Everybody calm down!" Yosuke demanded, however his words fell on deaf ears

"That's enough!" Chie cried out, trying to seperate the mess that was the Kou/Kanji/Daisuke pile up, only for in the ensuing choas, Kou to accidentally punch her in the gut

"Chie!" Everyone cried out simultaniously as the girl keeled over in pain, no voice however was louded than Yu's, who upon seeing Chie attacked, awoke an anger he had felt before

"I-I didn't mean to!" Kou tried to defend before Yu's fist smashed into his face and the boy mounted and began to pound on him

"Senpai!" Kanji shouted as he tried to pull him off

"Yu, stop it, you'll kill him!" Yosuke tried to plead as Yu roared, smashing his fists into Kou's face

"Get off of him!" Daisuke roared as he too began to try to get Yu off Kou

"Stop!" Rise screamed, tears running down her face

"Hey, hey!" Came a far off voice that was approaching fast "Enough, enough! Stop it!"

"Adachi-san, help!" Yosuke cried out as the detective ran over

"That's enough!" Adachi cried out as he latched onto Yu, the combined force of Yosuke, Kanji, Daisuke and Adachi was finally enough to lift him off Kou

"Chie-senpai, are you okay!?" Rise asked as she ran over to the girl, who was still hunched over

"Yeah..." Chie squeaked "I just had the wind knocked out of me..."

"Enough!" Daisuke stated as he pulled Kou away "Enough..."

"Keep that crazy bastard away from Senpai!" Kanji roared

"Keep _him _away!" Daisuke snapped back

"What the hell did you expect when he punched his girlfriend!?" Yosuke snapped "What kinda friend does that?!"

"If he was a good friend, then this situation wouldn't of happened in the first place!" Daisuke snapped back

"Oh so Yu was just supposed to let Kou have her!?" Yosuke shouted "Like some piece of meat?! He loves her damnit!"

"I loved her first!" Kou shouted

"It doesn't matter, she doesn't love you!" Yu roared

"Enough!" Adachi shouted before gesturing to Kou and Daisuke "You two, get outta here!

"You son of a-" Kou growled

"Go away, Ichijo!" Chie demanded as she stood up "Get lost and don't come back!"

Kou bared his teeth before his lip began to quiver, he quickly took off, Daisuke trailing behind him

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"That little shit!" Motoko roared

"Motoko!" Dojima gasped as he covered Nanako's ears

"Sorry!" Motoko stated "But that insolent little...he could of blinded my boy! I have half a mind to have a word with his Mother!"

"Mom, stop" Yu groaned as Chie held and Ice pack to his eye

"You shoulda seen Senpai" Kanji whistled "He was like a caged animal, it was like UFC or something..."

"Yeah, when Chie-senpai went down, it was like he just snapped" Rise muttered

"Chie, honey, are you okay?" Motoko questioned

"I'm fine, Mrs. Narukami" Chie smiled "I just had the wind knocked outta me is all..."

"It's a good thing Adachi-san was trailing nearby..." Yosuke sighed "Seriously, Yu went berserk and we couldn't get him to stop"

"Just so you know, I don't approve of what you did..." Dojima stated sternly "But he did strike a woman and that's inexcusible..."

"Uncle..." Yu muttered

"I'm not gonna punish you...just don't do it again" Dojima nodded

"I swear...if I see that boy..." Motoko growled "Yosuke-kun, I want that boy banned from Junes!"

"Oh! Well I don't really have that authority Ma'am" Yosuke gulped

"How's it look?" Yu asked as he pushed the ice pack off

"Well, it ain't bruised" Kanji noted "Red as fuck though"

"Language!" Dojima snapped

"O-Oh! Sorry" Kanji apologized

"Nowhere near as bad as you left Kou" Yosuke stated "Seriously, I think I saw him spit out a tooth..."

"Atta boy" Motoko smiled

"Motoko, don't encourage him!" Dojima groaned

_"The hosts of the popular TV Show, The Misery and Mystery of Japan, illegally filmed the premises of Yaso-Inaba High a few days ago"_

"Hey, check it out" Kanji noted as the group turned to the TV, footage from the illegal filmed TV show began to play

_"The TV crew can be seen here, harrassing students and forcing them to conduct interviews, two of the recovered interviews belonging to students Ayane Matsunaga and Yumi Ozawa" The Newscaster stated as Images of Yumi and Ayane appeared onscreen_

...

"Oh hell" Yosuke muttered

_"The filming would have continued further were for it not for the school contact the local authorities, Detective Tohru Adachi appeared on the scene-"_

"Thought it'd be a cold day in Hell before I saw Adachi on the news" Dojima sighed as an image of Adachi appeared onscreen

"Oh hell..." Yosuke repeared

**GAS STATION**

"Now...it is time" The Attendant muttered as the news broadcast finished

"About freaking time!" Sho laughed as the duo walked over to the container with the Android

"The memories were implanted within it long ago" The Attendant stated as he grabbed the android and dragged its limp body across the floor "So there is no need interfere with it once it's in there"

"We can remotely take it over though, can't we?" Sho asked

"Correct" The Attendant muttered before sticking the androids head into the TV "But...time will tell how this will go"

"Wait are we waiting for?" Sho laughed "The Shadow Operative bastards are on the way, those idiots will watch the Midnight Channel and this little toy here's the key for the last stretch of the plan"

"Indeed" The Attendant nodded before shoving the whole android into the TV "Now...the closing chapter begins..."

**JULY 26/ SCHOOL**

"Well, that's for a whole term" Yosuke sighed in happiness

"So that's it huh?" Yu questioned, his eye still bloodshot from yesterday

"Yep" Kanji nodded "I'd suggest we'd all go to Aiya to celebrate, but there's a chance we'd run into...y'know"

"I can't believe Yukiko-senpai no showed the last day of school" Rise mumbled

"Hey, let's not talk about that" Yosuke cut in "How about we get some stuff from Junes and head back to Yu's home"

"Sounds good!" Chie nodded

"I'll call up Uncle and let him know I'm bringing people over" Yu said as he pulled out his cellphone

"Hey, let's get a watermelon!" Rise suggested

"Really, doesn't seem like the right weather for it..." Yosuke muttered "It's even supposed to rain tonight..."

"Yeah" Kanji nodded "Which means..."

"The Midnight Channel will be on tonight" Yu stated

"But until then, let's celebrate" Chie smiled "I'll cook!"

"No! Nonononono!" Yosuke denied

"Oh relax, I'll just cook fried rice" She groaned before turning to Yu "It's your favorite, right?"

"Yeah" Yu smiled

"Oh yeah, suppose you guys don't have to hide the fact that you're together now" Yosuke noted "Just don't make out in front of us or anything"

"You jerk!" Chie snapped as she kicked Yosuke in the shin

**MIDNIGHT/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

Yu sighed and sat down after long day of celebrating the end of term, he now sat down on his couch, exhausted but forcing himself to stay awake to witness the Midnight Channel. He feared for whoever appeared but when the clock struck midnight, the farmiliar yellow static appeared and then presented an image that he never would of seen in his wildest dreams

"**THE DESPERATE FIGHT PROGRAM AMONGST HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS!**

**ONLY ONE OF THEM CAN CLAIM THE TITLE OF THE BEST OF THE BEST!**"

"Is that...Teddie!?" Yu cried out as the bear appeared onscreen, wearing a hat and cape

_"__**CONTESTANTS, COME ON DOWN!" **_Teddie _shouted _

**THE DRAGON-LOVER WITH A GOD COMPLEX, YU NARUKAMI!**

**CAPTAIN RESSENTIMENT, YOSUKE HANAMURA!**

**THE CARNIVORE WHO'S DISCARDED WOMANHOOD, CHIE SATONAKA!**

**THE UNCONQUERABLE SNOW-BLACK, YUKIKO AMAGI!**

**THE BULGING BEEFCAKE EMPEROR, KANJI TATSUMI!**

**THE SCANDALOUS SUPERSTAR IDOL, RISE KUJIKAWA!**

**THE FAILURE AT LOVE ORPHAN, KOU ICHIJO!**

**THE M.V.P OF ASEXUALITY, DAISUKE NAGASE!**

**THE PATHETIC POLICE STOOGE, TOHRU ADACHI!**

**THE ABANDONMENT MAGNET, YUMI OZAWA!**

**THE MEEK ORCHESTRAL LOVER, AYANE MATSUNAGA! **

**ONLY ONE OF THESE STUDENTS CAN TRULY REACH THE TOP AND CLAIM TO BE THE WINNER!**

**WELCOME TO THE P1 GRAND PRIX!**"

...

The image fizzled out, leaving all the viewers dumbfounded, yet they all shouted the exact same responce which was heard throughtout Inaba

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

* * *

Kei Nanjo from Persona 1

CHAPTER 10 - CHAPTER 10

RIP IN PIECE

REVEEW DIS IF U CRY EV4YTIME


	11. The Arena

**THE ARENA**

"What the hell..." Yu muttered over and over again, like it was the only word in his vocabulary...

_PIPIPIPIPIPI_

"Hel-"

_"Dude, what the EFF was that!?" Yosuke cried "What was with that Captain Ressentiment crap?!"_

"I think it's French"

_"That's not what I meant!" Yosuke snapped "Just what the hell was that?! We haven't seen anything like that before! Why were _we _on there?!"_

"I honestly...don't know" Yu admitted

_"Let me talk to him!"_

_"Hey! Back off!"_

_"Come onnnn! I have to tell him something beary important"_

_"Fine..." Yosuke sighed "Hang on, I'm putting Teddie on"_

_"Sensei, it's me, Teddie!" Teddie greeted "I finally got to see the Midnight Channel with my own eyes. Now I know exactly what's emotions are resonating with the other side, which are picked up by the TVs over here. It's clear now that it's not being filmed by anyone. Mystery solved! But that...bear we saw on TV wasn't me, and that wasn't really you on the other side either! That wasn't us, those were just pieces of that person's area in the TV World"_

"Wait, so you're saying that was someone's world?" Yu questioned "Like how Yukiko had the castle and Kanji had the bathhouse?"

_"Yep" Teddie nodded "It could belong to any of the people who were thrown in..."_

"Then we'll go in and save them all" Yu stated

_"Gotcha! I knew I could count on you Sensei!" Teddie said affectionately_

_"That's enough, Ted! Gimme the phone!" Yosuke demanded as he snatched it back "So...that world could belong to either Yumi, Ayane or Adachi-san..."_

"Maybe it's a combination of all three...it doesn't change the fact that we have save three people..."

_"Yeah..." Yosuke sighed _

"We'll meet up tomorrow" Yu nodded "See ya"

_"See ya" Yosuke said before hung up_

Yu was about to place the phone down and turn in for the night but it began to ring once more

"He-"

_"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT _CARNIVORE WHO'S DISCARDED WOMANHOOD _CRAP?!"_

"Ow" Yu groaned he rubbed his eardrum

_"Just what the hell was that!?" Chie shouted_

"Someone's own world within the TV" Yu stated

_"So...those were Yumi, Ayane or Adachi-san's true feelings?" Chie questioned "Why the hell would they think like...that?"_

"I have no idea to be honest with you..." Yu sighed

_"Another thing...I tried to call you earlier but the line was busy"_

"I was talking to Yosuke" He stated

_"Ah...I...I was wondering if you were trying to talk to Yukiko..." Chie muttered "I was trying to call her but she didn't answer..."_

"No I...I doubt Kou or Daisuke would answer either" Yu sighed "We'll just...hope to see them tomorrow"

_"Yeah" Chie groaned_

**JUNE 26/ LIMOUSINE**

"The pistols that the hijackers were carrying were model guns..." Mitsuru explained to the group "Further more, they claim their memories to be foggy and neither can clearly recall the incident"

"But it was all a distraction for the abduction of the cargo right?" The silver haired man questioned "That's what you told us..."

"Correct" Mitsuru sighed "The stolen cargo's contents were built by the former ergonomics research laboratory, in the course of their research on Shadows...a unit that was sealed away..._The Fifth Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon_...Labrys"

"Fifth Generation?" A man in a baseball cap questioned "But Aigis is Seventh Generation..."

"Indeed...that would make Labrys...my older sister" Aigis stated

"According to the files we researched" Fuuka muttered "Labrys was the first model equipped with an artificial personality"

"So in other words..." A teenaged woman with a white choker around her neck muttered

"She has a heart...?" Mitsuru asked

"I wouldn't say that" Fuuka denied "She apprears to have been used for gathering operation data, rather than actual field use."

"What else do we know?" Mitsuru asked

"It says she wasn't equipped with firearms, but..._special equipment _instead" Fuuka read "It doesn't say what, though..."

...

"Aigis" Mitsuru said "It's possible that this situation may require combat, are you okay with that?"

"What you are asking is, _should it come down to it, could I kill Labrys, my older sister, with my own hands_...correct?" Aigis questioned "Thank you for your concern, but I will be fine. I understand as I too, am a weapon with a heart, capable of using a Persona. If I were controlled by someone and put to misuse...and someone was hurt because of that, it would be very painful...but this is why I absolutely must save Labrys!"

"I see..." Mitsuru smiled "We're about to arrive, Akihiko, Yamagishi, Aigis, Iori, Amada, Takeba, get ready"

...

"A Limo?" Yu muttered as the long vehicle drove past him "Who drives a limo in Inaba?...Never mind, I gotta meet the others already"

...

"Um...are we not conducting an undercover operation?" Aigis asked

"Yes" Mitsuru nodded

"For an undercover mission, do you not need to conceal your personnel and vehicles?" Aigis questioned "May I say something that I've been meaning to say for a while now?"

"No" Mitsuru said firmly "All I asked was with a car with enough space"

"It looks like we're popular with the locals" Junpei noted as tons of camera flashes went off outside

"Move us to another location, immediantly!" Mitsuru demanded

**JUNKYARD**

"We should we out of the public eye here" Mitsuru stated as she and the group exited the limo

"Mitsuru-san, someone is approaching us" Aigis noted

"Yes" Mitsuru nodded "I told him to meet us here...hello, Katsuya"

"Mitsuru-san, Aigis-san" Katsuya greeted "I see you brought everyone..."

"Hey...uh, sorry about Nanjo, man..." Junpei said "We know you two were close"

...

"Indeed" Katsuya nodded "And if Minazuki is here, I suspect we'll find him in the TV world..."

"A whole other reality inside a TV?" Ken Amada question, Koromaru barking by his side

"It seems insane I know, but it is true...I experienced it myself" Katsuya stated as he pushed up his glasses

...

"I see, then we should enter using that large TV on the junk pile" Aigis stated as she walked towards it, gently placing her fingertips on it, which slid right through like she put her hand in a bucket of water

"Whoa!" Junpei cried out

"Could there really be..?" Yukari questioned

"How is it? Do you feel anything?" Mitsuru questioned

"No, I...wait!" Aigis interrupted herself "I feel...a reaction with a personality module, just like mine!"

"Personality Module?" Akihiko questioned

"Since this is the first time I've felt it, I can't say with 100% certainty...but the probability seems high..."

"I see...in that case..." Mitsuru muttered

**JUNES**

"Is it...just us?" Yu questioned as he sat by the table with Yosuke, Kanji, Chie, Teddie and Rise

"It looks that way" Yosuke sighed "I've tried calling Yukiko, Kou and Daisuke but they're having none of it

"This sucks dude...some love triangle bullshit ain't a good reason to go and abandon the Investigation Team" Kanji grunted

"We can't get a hold of them...so there's nothing we can do" Yosuke sighed

...

"No...we have to get them" Yu stated

"Yeah..." Chie nodded "People's lives are at stake...we need everyone"

"You're right, let's go to their homes...If you two are okay with it" Yosuke suggested

**JUNKYARD**

"We aren't going in right away?!" Akihiko cried

"You still haven't changed, have you?" Mitsuru sighed "We still don't have a good grasp on the situation inside, we must secure a method of return and..."

"So what?" Akihiko questioned "In order to get Labrys out, someone has to go in right?"

"Yes, well..." Mitsuru muttered

"Whoever this Minazuki guy is, he hijacked a plane just to get to her and throw her inside the TV, but that might not be their endgame, if we wait around, we're probably gonna pay for it.

...

We're different from how we were two years ago...we chose to fight shadows as professionals, we chose this mission ourselves. I found my resolves. I'm ready to put my life on the line. That's why I traveled around the world to acquire true strength. And now, when push comes to shove, you're hesitating?"

...

_"When Mitsuru-san finds herself in charge, her strategies naturally take the safety of those involved into careful consideration..." Aigis noted to herself "Akihiko-san's opinions may be a bit strong, but they are very convincing. Composure and caution are connected but sometimes they become timid. Passion and courage are also connected, and rarely, they bceome recklessness...Mitsuru-san and Akihiko-san...if each of their ideals were to clash without reservations, that would be a sight...yet, seeing those two...make me feel at ease"_

"Very well" Mitsuru sighed

"Ma'am" Katsuya cut in "May I suggest something?"

**AMAGI INN**

"Oh hello Chie, dear!" Yukiko's mother greeted "Looking for Yukiko?"

"Yes Ma'am" Chie nodded

"Well, I'm afraid she's not here" Yukiko's mother sighed "In fact...she hasn't come home in the last few days"

"What?!" Yu questioned

"Yes, it is troubling, honestly I was starting to think of calling the Police..." Yukiko's mother revealed "But she disappeared once...and she came back, maybe I'll leave it another day or so..."

"You don't think..." Chie muttered to Yu, just before his phone began to ring

"Hello?" Yu greeted

_"Dude, Ichijo's missing!" Kanji cried out "His family said they ain't seen him in a few days. Yosuke-Senpai checked with Nagase-Senpai's family and they ain't seen him either!"_

"Shit...shit!" Yu panicked

"What's wrong?" Chie asked

"Yukiko's missing too..." Yu told Kanji

_"Oh shit..." Kanji muttered_

"Get Yosuke and come to Junes, ASAP" Yu called

_"Yeah" Was Kanji's simple responce before hanging up_

"Kou and Daisuke are missing too..." Yu informed Chie

"Oh no..." She whispered...

"Come on, we need to get over there now!" Yu stated before the pair took off

**JUNKYARD**

"I don't get this" Junpei grumbled

"Katsuya brings up a fair point" Mitsuru stated "Labrys is almost certainly in there, but we don't know if Minazuki is"

"If he's not, then we must keep some of you out here in the event that he attempts an attack" Katsuya said

"Me, Aigis and Mitsuru will head in" Akihiko told "You guys stay here"

"Man, this whole journey was for nothing" Junpei groaned

"Moron" Yukari called out "If Sho Minazuki shows up, we're here to stop him!"

"That's right" Ken nodded "Otherwise, he could sneak attack Mitsuru-senpai and the others"

"Us three will be plenty" Mitsuru claimed "We'll rescue Labrys, no problem"

**JUNES**

"Let's head in!" Yu called out as he practically leapt into the TV World

"Dude, ease off with the noise!" Yosuke cried as he followed Yu in "You don't want people to see us do you?"

"Hey, is it me or does it seem different?" Kanji questioned as the group, the white void they usually plummeted into was now pitch black

"What's going on Teddie?" Chie questioned

"Wheee!" The bear called out

"W-What's going on?!" Rise cried "Is this how it normally is?!"

"No!" Yu shouted "But we can't stop, we just gotta go with it!"

...

_"Hehehe...looks like the stage is set. The P-1 Grand Prix is officially open!"_

"Whose voice was that?!" Chie asked

"Ted, was that you?" Kanji asked

"No!" Teddie denied

"It sounded just like you!" Yosuke snapped as they group continued to fall

"It wasn't me!" Teddie cried "It must've been that other bear in the ca-"

Before Teddie could finish, the group was enveloped in a bright white light, blinding them and shutting out all their senses...

...

"Ugh..." Yu groaned as he pulled himself, his head raising up as he sat uo. Observing his surroundings, he saw that he was sitting at his desk in his classroom "What's going on?...Did I fall asleep?"

_"I'm in my classroom...was I dreaming?" Yu groaned as he rubbed his head "What...was I dreaming about?"_

His train of thoughts were interrupted by large cheer from outside, gazing out, he saw several students excitedly pacing around outside. Yu rushed down outside to see what the commotion was about, eventually joining the pack of students, just when he was about to question what was going on, he spotted what seemed to be a pack of TV's piled on top of each other

"What the...?" Yu questioned before an Image appeared on the TV screen

_"Greetings! Boys and Girls of Yasogami! Is everybody ready?! The P-1 Grand Prix is about to start!"_

"Rise?!" Yu questioned as the girl appeared on the TV screen, decked out in a headset "What's going on?"

_"Oh! Our challenger has already made his appearance! Just what I expect from Yu-senpai! He's really got that fighting spirit!"_

"W-What?" Yu questioned, rubbing his head as the crowd of students cheered him on

_"Oh" So~rry! You prefer the other one, don't cha?!" Rise laughed "The Dragon Lover with a God Complex!"_

_Now _he remembered

"I remember..." Yu muttered "And in all honesty, that name isn't so bad when compared to the others..."

_"Weeeeeeell, anyway..." Rise hummed "First up, General Teddie had a few words for everybody!"_

"Wait...Teddie?!" Yu questioned as the familiar bear appeared on screen, donned in a hat and cape "No...that's the other one, the one we saw on the Midnight Channel!"

_"The day has finally come!" General Teddie laughed "Our beary own P-1 Grand Prix is now...OPEN!"_

"What is this?!" Yu questioned as the crowd erupted once more "Just...whose world inside the TV is this?!"

_WHISTLE_

Yu covered his ears to protect them against the deafening screech, twisting his head around, he found the literal whistle blower

"What's goin' on here? Pilin' up a buncha TV's in fronta the buildin'...where the heck did they come from?" The owner of the whistle asked "Geez...who thought it was a good idea to be causin' such a commotion at school?"

Yu's eyes inspected the woman, he didn't recognize her but she was decked out in Yasogami High uniform and had silver hair and eyes, not too dissimilar to his own

"As the Student Council President, I never approved this Grand Prix thing!" She stated

"Student Council President?" Yu questioned _"I've never seen her before...maybe because I've only been here for three months..."_

"Oi, Dragon-Lover Complex guy!" She called out

"Y-Yes?!" Yu questioned

"Aren't you one 'a these contestants in the Grand Prix?!" She asked

"Yes...sort of..." Yu sighed "It's not by choice"

"Izzat broadcast comin' from inside the school?!" She snapped "Hurry up'n get rid'a this stuff already! It's makin' such a ruckus that student won't be able ta get home on time!"

...

"That...that is true" Yu muttered

_"Oh, no~o, so scary!" Rise mocked as she appeared on the screen once again "Risette...really hates that girl_

_..._

_Alright everyone! Get rid of miss sour-puss over there!"_

"What's going on?" Yu repeated for what seemed like the tenth time as he faced the now-stone faced crowd "None of them look like they even heard what the president said...Rise! What's going on here?!"

She didn't respond, and for a second, the only sounds he could hear were of the approaching students and the president letting out a sigh

"I warned ya..." She groaned before slamming a charging student into the ground, another quickly followed, and another...and so on until they eventually formed a pile

"Whoa..." Yu muttered

"I ain't gonna say it twice!" She snapped at him "Get rid'a this stuff right now!"

"W-Why me?" Yu questioned

"Well...you're one 'a the contestants ain't ya?!" She snapped again

_"If that didn't work..." Rise muttered as she appeared onscreen again "Then how about..."_

"Hey, look out!" Yu cried as he pulled the Student Council President away from the pile of collapsing TV's. However, one was heading straight for him and he didn't have time to dodge

However, Izanagi proceeded to take care of it, appearing to slice the appliance in half before it fell on his master

"Izanagi..." Yu muttered

"H-Hey...what was that you just did?!" She cried

"I was able to summon my Persona..." Yu muttered "So this must mean...I'm inside the TV-"

_"You should have just died" Rise growled_

...

"You're not really Rise...are you?" Yu glared as the screen

_"It doesn't matter" She laughed him off "Go ahead and protect that girl with ye o'mighty god complex"_

"What's that supposed to mean?" Yu questioned before the screen turned off "Wait!2

"That girl was in the announcement room, right...?" Miss President questioned "Her foolin' around like this...I'm definitely gonna put a stop to it...!"

"Ah,,w-wait!" Yu called out as the girl took off _"This is bad, it doesn't matter how strong she is, she doesn't have a Persona!_

_..._

_W-Wait...could this be...her..."_

"Miss President! Wait!" Yu shouted as he pursued her

"Oh?" She muttered before stopping and turning to him with a big smile "Thanks a bunch...for earlier. You were pretty cool. Mr Dragon-Lover God Complex!"

...

"My name is Yu!" He told her before she ran off

...

"Yasogami High School...that was definitely on the map of Inaba...it's been completely recreated here...is this truly inside the TV?" Mitsuru questioned as she overlooked the school

**MUSIC ROOM**

"This is a school's...music room" Aigis muttered as she overlooked the piano laid down in the far left "A blackboard, portraits, a music stand, a piano...yet my sensors are detecting slight fluctuations in the walls and the floor...nothing he as it seems...I know of a place like this...another world were shadows ran rampant..."

...

"Hmm?" She questioned as TV in the corner of the room began to flicker on

_"I discovered an unknown, yet bewitching babe!" General Teddie laughed as he appeared "Un-UNEXPECTED! UN! UN! __**UN! UNEXPECTED! UNEX-UN-UN-UN-UN-UN-UN-CASE 04, UNEXPECTED INTRUDER, ENTERING ELIMINATION PROCESS!**__"_

"Whoa!"

_CRASH_

"Ow...the hell? Did the floor just open up?"

"A normal...human" Aigis muttered as the boy pulled himself up

"Never seen you before..." he hummed

"I apologize...my appeareance must seem strange to a normal person" Aigis stated "I am Aigis...I have blue eyes, blonde hair and gatling cannons"

...

"Huh?"

"I'm sorry, I was trying out my prepared explanations for students...please forget that" Aigis apologized

"I don't really get it" He shrugged "I'm Daisuke Nagase...so, are you my opponent or what?"

"Opponent?" Aigis questioned "Why would I fight you Nagase-san?"

"One on one it is then" Daisuke grunted

"But why? This our first meeting Nagase-san, I have no reason to fight you" Aigis claimed

"Oh? But isn't this why we're here?" Daisuke questioned

"Why...we're here? What do you mean?" Aigis asked "To start with, where are we exactly, If you know Nagase-san, then..."

"Would you just shut up?!" Daisuke snapped, shocking the girl "You need to shut your damn yap! You glorified toaster! _Nagase-san _huh?! I don't think some fake girl should be getting all friendly!"

...

_"Machine...Fake Girl...since I am not wearing clothing camouflage, that would be the natural reaction to seeing my appearance...however...it still...pains my heart"_

"What's the matter? If you gonna hit first..." Daisuke growled before summoning his Persona "Then I will! Fujin!"

"A Persona!" Aigis gasped as she dodged the blow "If he possess' one then...we should have considered the possibility of other Persona users over here!"

"Dodged it, eh?" Daisuke scoffed before his Persona charged again "How about this then?!"

"Athena!" Aigis cried out as her own Persona arose to defend her

"A Persona?!" Daisuke cried "Even though you're just a fake girl, you got a Persona, huh? Guess that means you a fake heart too, right?! I'll show you the power of a real Persona!"

**LOCKERS**

"Damn it...I'm totally lost" Yosuke grumbled "This place is inside the TV right? But this isn't the real Yasogami High...the layout's completely different"

_"Oh, Yosuke? What's wrong? Are chasing after some young ladie's bear-hind?"_

"Teddie!" Yosuke cried out as the Bear appeared on a monitor

_"You're a contestant in the P-1 Grand Prix! So don't even think about it!"_

"Listen, you!" Yosuke snapped before a explosion occured, causing the place to fill up with smoke "W-What the?!"

...

"**What's wrong, got nothing to do?**" Came a mocking voice "**Shame...but that's how it always is here in the boonies, right?**"

"What the...no way" Yosuke gulped, as the approaching fog began to fade away, revealing the figure who just spoke "How can you be here?!"

"**What's wrong? Not happy to see me?**" He laughed "**Of course you're not...you're never happy in this shitty little town**"

Yosuke could only stare agape, as somehow, his shadow stood before him

**GYM**

"Where is...damn it!" Chie cursed as she ran down the hallway "The layout's completely screwed over! Where the hell is everything?!"

Chie continued her tyrade, searching for anything and anyone. Before finding a door that lead to the gym. Chairs were stacked upon chairs around the floor, some piles leading up to the roof, however, what really caught her eye was the girl standing dead center in the middle of the floor

"Yukiko!" Chie cried out as she ran over

"C-Chie" Yukiko stuttered

"Yukiko, I'm so glad you're safe!" Chie smiled in relief

"What do you want, _thief_" Yukiko spat

...

"Yukiko..." Chie muttered

"The one thing I truly wanted in this world...and you took it" Yukiko growled "Just like the selfish cow that you are!"

"Yukiko, it's not like that!" Chie tried to defend

"Well, I suppose it's good for you after all! You finally found someone pathetic enough who will love you!" Yukiko mocked "What kind of man must Yu-kun really be if he'd lust after garbage like you instead of me?!

...

I loved him..."

"I know you did...I'm sorry" Chie sniffed as tears stung her eyes "I...I don't want our friendship to end like this, Yukiko!"

"Oh don't worry, it won't" Yukiko chuckled "It will end because you can't be friends with a dead person, Persona!"

"Yukiko, wait!" Chie gasped as Yukiko summoned Konohana-Sakuya

"Defend yourself Chie!" Yukiko shouted as she charged foward

**SCHOOL ENTRANCE**

"There's no response from my communicator...the noise here is sever" Mitsuru muttered "In any event, we still don't have enough information about this world. I've tried searching for the enemy but...these surrounding building...and these students, aren't real! Artemisia can contact other Persona users...I tried to contact Akihiko right now and the nearby students...turned into silhouettes...as long as they don't react rashly, they'll be okay...Akihiko and-"

**MUSIC ROOM**

"Aigis!" Daisuke laughed as the Android girl was blown back into the wall "How'd you like my Fujin's wind?! Have as much as you want, you damn machine!"

The girl did not respond, rather, just fall onto the ground

"Well aren't you a sorry sight, Ms. Mechanical Doll!" Daisuke mocked

_"It is certainly true that I am not human...yet, I still feel pain inside my heart...that would only be natural..._

"Heh..."

"What's so funny?!" Daisuke snapped

"Nothing..." Aigis claimed "I just thought it was funny that I had become so human without realizing it..."

_"When he called me a fake...it pained me...in my heart...my heartache is real!"_

"Human?!" Daisuke roared "You're nothing but a manufactured weapon! Don't forget! The whole reason you have a heart in the first place was so you could obtain a Persona!"

...

_"Strange...come to think of it, he was very calm when he first saw me...and he said he didn't recognize me" Aigis recalled "And yet his words just now were as if he knew, in detail, of my function as a weapon...it's almost as if he became another person halfway through...what made Nagase-san change?"_

"That's it, I'm gonna make you into scrap metal!" Daisuke shouted, reeling back his fist

Which was promptly caught by Aigis

"W-What the?!" Daisuke cried as Aigis began to squeeze his hand "Where did she get this strength?!"

"Nagase-san...I do not know what has happened to you, however, since you are a Persona user and my primary abilities were not enought to deal with you, I have made the judgement that you are dangerous. I am sorry, but...I can no longer hold back against you"

_**ORGIA MODE!**_

"What the hell?!" Daisuke cried as she was blown back as the girl seemed to power up. He opened his eyes, only to find her flying towards him

"I would like you have my special attack" She stated flatly

_**MEGIDO FIRE EX!**_

And with that, Daisuke was blasted across the room and into the wall

...

"Please snap out of it, Nagase-san!"

"Ugh...damn it, that hurt" Daisuke groaned

"I'm glad, I was worried that I had not adjusted enough for opponent who could use a Persona" Aigis stated "But you appear to be okay!"

...

"Huh?" Daisuke questioned as he saw that Aigis was holding him, bridal style. "W-Why are you carrying me like that?!"

"Is this not the spousal method of carrying?" Aigis questioned

"No! It's bridal method!" He shouted, but then began to wonder "Is it? Aren't they both the same thing?...A-Anyway, put me down!"

...

"I lost...huh?" He questioned as Aigis released him "I guess the big leagues are pretty rough..."

"Nagase-san, are you okay? That sounded like something Akihiko-san would say" Aigis asked

"Who the hell is Akihiko?" Daisuke questioned "And lay off with the Nagase-san, just Daisuke is fine"

"I may call you...Daisuke-san?" Aigis wondered "Even though I am a fake girl..."

"Fake what?" Daisuke asked "I got no idea what you are talking about, you look a little different, that's all

...

What's wrong?"

"Nothing..." Aigis stated with a small smile "Once again...it sems that I really _have _become Human"

_"Daisuke-san...doesn't seem to recall anything from earlier" She noted "Are you...the real Daisuke-san, I wonder...?"_

"Anyway...are the others here?" Daisuke questioned "If you beat me...then good luck with them"

"Must I fight more people from here on?" Aigis questioned

"Yeah...it's a tournament" Daisuke sighed "I don't really get it myself, but Teddie showed up on the TV screen and explained that only one can win...I just wanna get outta here...wait, so Teddie didn't send you here to fight me?"

"Teddie?" Aigis questioned "Daisuke-san, why is a fighting tournament being held here? How man people will be up ahead?"

"Huh?" Daisuke questioned "So you're really...not...some..."

"Daisuke-san!" Aigis called out before the boy collapsed

"I guess, I'm too beat to carry on..." Daisuke groaned "Hey...Aigis, right?...Find my buddy Kou, he's..."

"He's outcold..." Aigis observed "But there are no abnormalities in is pulse...he should be find so I'll let him rest"

_"__**INTRUDERES ARE PERSONA USERS. DUE TO DIFFICULTIES IN ELIMINATION; HTYE WILL BE ACKNOWLEDGED AS VALID TARGETS**_

_..._

_Woohoo! What a fox! You want to join in our fun, huh? Since your fighting spirit is so grizzly, how about a warm welcome?"_

"As I suspected, you must be Teddie" Aigis noted

_"Teddie? Non, non, mademoiselle! It's __**GENERAL **__Teddie!" He stated "Since you're cutting in, you don't know who I am. But from now on, remember my name bear-y well! I'll be waiting for you, in the next arena!"_

"Next Arena?...So I will have to the fight the _others _Daisuke-san mentioned?" Aigis questioned "No matter...my older sister, Labrys...I made it my mission to find her, no matter what!...Please wait for my return, Daisuke-san"

**LOCKERS**

_"Oooh yeah! It's finally about to start! The P-1 Grand Prix" Rise cheered "Two Yosuke-Senpai's are going to duke it out! It's one on one so let's see who has the right to call himself the real Yosuke!"_

"You...how the hell are you here?!" Yosuke snapped

"**Your Mom**"

"What?!"

"**Ask a stupid question, get a stupid answer**" Shadow Yosuke chuckled

"How...Yu defeated you! You became my Persona!" Yosuke snapped

"**That's right! Your little silver haired buddy saved the day...so great when he does that**" Shadow Yosuke laughed "**He bails you out a lot, huh?**"

"What are you saying?" Yosuke growled

"**I'm saying that you can't do jack shit without him**" Shadow Yosuke scoffed "**Even now, when you had the whole **_**bro **_**moment, you know he's far superior**"

"If you're trying to rattle me, it won't work" Yosuke growled

"**He managed to woo Satonaka in, what? A month and a half? That's impressive. Getting a girlfriend that quick**" Shadow Yosuke whistled "**And shit, he's swapping spit with her when we didn't get **_**close **_**to Saki**"

"You stop right there!" Yosuke demanded "I won't have you talking about Saki like that!"

"**Ooh, whatcha gonna do, huh?**" Shadow Yosuke laughed

"I'll tell you what I'll do, Persona!" Yosuke roared as he summoned Jiraiya

"**Hell, not a bad idea, maybe I'll try it out for myself!**" Shadow Yosuke sneered "**Persona!**"

"W-What?!" Yosuke questioned as the other him summoned an identical Persona "That's...impossible!"

"**Ain't looking so impossible from where I'm standing**" The Shadow mocked

...

"Damn you..." Yosuke cursed as he pulled out his Naito "Come on! Bring it!"

"**Alright then!**" The Shadow laughed as it charged forward, with it's Jiraiya swinging down. Yosuke swiflty rolled to the side to avoid it

"Damn it...how's this possible?" Yosuke questioned "Persona's and Shadows, they're practically one and the same...and yet, he's got a..."

"**This would be a lot faster if you just gave up**" Shadow Yosuke laughed "**Come on, Yu's not coming to save you...you know you can't win**"

"I can beat you, all by myself!" Yosuke roared

"**Bullshit! You're nothing more than a two-bit side character!**" Shadow Yosuke snapped as it charged forward and his Jiraiya took another swing which was blocked by the real Jiraiya "**You got a bit stronger, so what?! It was all thanks to him! You're just a little sheep, and Yu is the shepard!**"

"Yu has nothing to do with this!" Yosuke yelled as he slashed away with his Naito, cutting the Shadow's arm. The Shadow responded with a knee to the gut that knocked Yosuke over

_"Uh-Oh! Looks like Yosuke-Senpai's better verbal attack hit Yosuke-Senpai for massive damage!" Rise's voice rang through _

"**Does it still piss you off?**" The Shadow chuckled "**All you've been through in the past few months, and you still can't beat me...you shouldn't be too surprised though, it's impossible to improve yourself...a little runt like you has no reedeming qualities. You're weak...AND THE WEAK ARE EATEN BY THE STRONG!**"

The Shadow continued to laugh at he pathetic look on his true self's face, before lifting his foot up, intending to crush his skull

"I think it's about time I stop comparing myself to other people..." Yosuke muttered

"**Huh?**" The Shadow questioned

"Yeah...I know..." Yosuke mumbled as tears slightly stinged his eyes "I know that despite everything, despite what I say, what he says...I'll always be second best to him...at everything. But that doesn' mean...I won't get stronger! It doesn't mean I need him for everything! If you were really me, then you would know that!"

"**What?!**" Shadow Yosuke shouted before a gust of wind from Jiraiya made him stumble a bit, by the time he regained his footing. Yosuke had stabbed one of the Naito, straight through the Shadow's head

_"Huh?! Amazing!" Rise cried out as she appeared on a monitor "With one magnificent blow, the real Yosuke-Senpai turned the tables"_

Yosuke ignored her, focusing on the Shadow. Whoses eyes turned blank and proceeded to dissolve into a black goo

"What the?!" Yosuke gurgled as the Shadow literally melted away and specks of small golden lights flew up into the air

_"Bear-ied the hatchet with yourself, Yosuke?" General Teddie mocked_

"Teddie!" Yosuke growled

_"C'mon, further inside the school, your next fight is waiting!"_

"You're not actually Teddie...who are you?!" Yosuke questioned

_"Non! Non! We will not be taking any questions!" General Teddie laughed before the feed cut out_

"Damn it...I don't get this" Yosuke groaned "Was that really my Shadow? How could he use a Persona? Didn't he _become _my Persona? Damn it...if only...no, I don't...need him for everything...I-"

_CLINK_

"What the?!" Yosuke called out as his Persona appeared before him, and then morphed into a new shape. Now blue in color with a large circular ring around his body as well as around his neck. It now donned a pair of sunglasses, as well as head of read hair that spiralled upwards like flames

_Yosuke's strong will that allowed him to accept and overcome his weakness had awakened his heart's true power...His Persona has been reborn! __**Jiraiya **__has transfigured into __**Susano-o**__!_

"Is this...my power?" Yosuke questioned "All because I accepted it...that I'm not as good as Yu?"

_"__**You're just a little sheep, and Yu is the Shepard!**__"_

"Why am I thinking about that?" Yosuke asked himself as he clutched his head "There's no time for this...I'm gonna put an end to this Grand Prix!"

**HALLWAY**

"Another Invisible wall" Aigis noted "These walls have been around since I left the music room, restricting me to a certain route...they are likely guiding me to my next oppenent. It seems the organizer of this tournament wishes me to descend these stairs..."

Aigis proceeded to do just that, however, when she was halfway down, she heard footsteps from behind her and turned around, catching a glimpse of someone

"Excuse me!" Aigis called as she ran back up

"What?" The Girl she saw questioned as she turned around "Can't ya see I'm in a hurry?"

_"She passed directly through an invisible wall!" Aigis noted _

"May I speak with you for a moment?" Aigis asked "Just who are you?"

"Me? I'm the Student Council President of this here school!" She stated "Who're you? You don't look like a student. That's a funny lookin' costume you got on there...hey, are you one'a them participants in that P-Whatever Grand Prix that's makin' such a mess?!"

"No" Aigis flatly denied

"Alright then, I'm goin' ahead!" Miss President stated "I'd be pretty useless as the Student Council President if I couldn't put a stop to this mess!"

"Please wait!" Aigis called out to her as she attempted to pursue her but slammed into an invisible wall "Wait! Please don't go! SISTER!"

_"I sensed her personality module...that was...Labrys" Aigis noted "But...she appeared to be...human?"_

**CLASSROOM**

"Ugh...how'd this happen? I can't breath in here!" The Bear groaned before peering out "Where am I? A classroom? But the entrance was..."

Teddie continued to complain, his body began to deflate as he went on, to the point where he floated out between a gap when he was done

"Huh? I was in a locker?!" He cried out before his body returned to normal "Who locked me up in here?"

"There you are!" Came the voice of Miss President, standing in the doorway with her hands on her hips "You're the organizer of this event, ain't ya!"

"Event organizer, what are you talking about?" Teddie questioned before _noticing _the girl "W-Whoa! What a babe!"

"Don't play dumb with me!" She snapped as she pointed to a nearby TV suspended from the ceiling "That's you, ain't it?"

"TV?" Teddie questioned before the screen fizzed on

_"The Desperate Fighting Program amongst High School Students! A new legend is about to begin!"_

_"May the Manliest of all men, come on down!" General Teddie shouted_

"W-W-W-What the heck is this?!" Teddie cried "That weird guy looks just like me!"

"Don't think you're gonna talk your way outta this one!" Miss President snapped

"Y-You're wron-Just take a bear-y good look! That guy's..." Teddie tried to defend

_"You...what you're doing?" General Teddie growled_

"So you're the one who stuffed me in here!" Teddie shouted "On top of that, you're violating my image rights!"

_"I'll leave you two alone for now" General Teddie gurgled "But I'll make sure to delibearate on some counter-measures..."_

"Ahh, wait!" Teddie cried out as the screen turned off

"This some kinda joke?" She growled

"Y-You've got to bear-lieve me!" Teddie tried to plead "But...who are you anyway?"

"Who am I?" She questioned "I'm this School's Student Council President! Geez...how many times do I gotta explain that today?"

"President?" Teddie questioned "Could a cutie pie like you really be such an important person at the school Yosuke and the others go to?"

"You're wrong, I ain't important!" She claimed "I was chosen by everybody to be the representative for the students...to work for their sake as President! That's how it is, and that's why puttin' a stop to this craziness is _my _job!"

"What modesty! A pretty girl, chosen by her peers, who works her fingers to the bone for the common people?! You're a goddess! I've just met a goddess!" Teddie yelped happily "Miss President, I'm going to go with you!"

"What's this, all of a sudden?" Miss President asked

"I've made my decision!" Teddie stated "I'm going to protect you from now on, Miss President! After all, a princess has gotta have a knight to protect her, y'know!"

"My Knight...?" She questioned "But you're the one who caused all'a this in the first place!"

"I told you, you're wrong! Fine! We'll do it like this then! We're gonna meet face to face with that fake and I'll get the real story out of him!" Teddie roared "I'll protect you from that evil impostor, my princess...and then, at the end, a kiss..."

"Either way, I guess we're headin' to the announcement room..." She sighed "Alright! Let's get goin' then!"

"Yeah! I'd follow you anywhere Miss President!" Teddie said as he began to skip alongside her

**FIRST FLOOR HALLWAY**

_"Compared to earlier, my senses are much more clear...everything is spreading out before me" Mitsuru noted as she summoned her Persona "I recognize these two reactions very well...Akihiko and Aigis...it's seems they're both still safe...well...since Aigis is closer, I'll try and contact her first...Aigis...Aigis...! Can you hear me? Aigis!"_

"Mitsuru-san!" Aigis cried "I was finally able to establish contact...! Are you with Akihiko-san?"

_"No, I'm alone. However, I've confirmed his safety, so I'd like you to give me a report on the current situation."_

...

_"I see" Mitsuru nodded as Aigis explained "So there are several other Persona users besides us...and invisible walls, in addition to that...this silly little event is a much larger nuisance than I thought..."_

"Yes, it appears that we have no choice but to obey the rules at the time...oh, and one more thing" Aigis remembered "Some time ago, I caught sight of Labrys"

_"What?!" Mitsuru gasped "Is that true?"_

"Yes...however, I lost sight of her..." Aigis sighed "To all outward appearances, she is a human being, however, with just a small amount of contact I had with her body...I felt the reaction from a Personality Module! There's no doubt in my mind, that girl is Labrys..."

_"I see..." Mitsuru muttered_

"Shall we try and meet up?" Aigis questioned

_"No. Don't worry about meeting up for now. Under the rules, if we were to try and co-operate, we would most likely end up fighting amongst ourselves."_

"Understood"

_"We still don't know exactly how Labrys s connected to all this" Mitsuru declared "Be very careful!"_

"You too, Mitsuru-san" Aigis smiled

"Now then..." Mitsuru sighed as she broke contact "I'll try contacting Aki-"

She stopped in both words and actions as she heard footsteps, turning around, she faced the noise maker

"Who are you?" The young girl questioned

"Do not be alarmed" Mitsuru stated "I'm not your enemy. I'm a Persona user..."

"Really?" She asked "Suou-san told us there were more out there..."

"You know Katsuya?" Mitsuru questioned "Are you one of the Persona users from Inaba?"

"Yeah..." She mumbled "I'm...Rise..."

"I see then..." Mitsuru nodded "There's no need to be alarmed, I-"

"Why are two just standing there?"

"Huh?" Rise questioned as she turned around, facing ... "Oh, it's only Yu-senpai"

...

"Something's wrong" Mitsuru muttered

"Suppose there's nothing you can do anyway..." _Yu _sneered "**There's nothing any of you, beside Chie, can do with without me**"

"Huh?" Rise questioned

"Get back!" Mitsuru called "That boy isn't human!"

"What are you talking about?" Rise questioned "That's my Senpai!"

"**Yeah**" _Yu _laughed as he unsheathed his sword

"Yu-senpai?" Rise questioned

"**Less talk...**" _Yu _laughed, lifting up his head to reveal bright yellow eyes "**More dying...**"

**JUNKYARD**

"Man, this is such bullcrap..." Junpei moaned as he kicked a rock "Why didn't we go in with the rest of 'em?"

"I already explained, Minazuki could be baiting us" Katsuya re-explained "It's possible that he intends to launch an assault against us..."

"So we're stationed here to make sure he doesn't come after them" Fuuka finished

"But even so, how would he know where we were?" Junpei asked

"We must assume that he has eyes everywhere..." Katsuya admitted as he pushed up his glasses

"Man, this whole TV world stuff makes my head hurt..." Junpei groaned "I swear, Ken had better come back with some answers from the Gas Station attendant"

"Speaking of..." Katsuya noted as the boy had returned

"Great, did you ask the guy?" Junpei asked

"He wasn't there" Ken shrugged

"Aw, come on..." Junpei groaned

**CLASSROOM**

"So...this is a real man's fight eh?"

"Yeah..." Akihiko smiled "I don't know you are kid, but I get the feeling the only way we'll get to know each other better is fist to fist!"

"Hell yeah!" Kanji roared, picking up a nearby chair to use as a weapon

**HALLWAY**

"Damn it..." Yu groaned as he ran along another hallway "Miss President, where are you?"

_"None of that is true!" A voice rang from behind a door he just passed _

"That voice...!" Yu recalled as he grinded to a halt "Yumi!"

And then, just as he grabbed the door handle, he held the words he dreaded

_"You're not me!"_

"Yumi, No!" Yu shouted as he practically jumped through the door, arriving before Yumi and her Shadow

"Yu...ku-" Yumi began to take notice before feeling feint

"Yumi!" Yu cried out before catching the girl before she collapsed "Yumi..."

"**Well now...**" Shadow Yumi chuckled as it began to morph "**If it isn't the little heartbreaker!**"

"Don't worry..." Yu said to the girl as she laid her down over in the corner of the room "I'll stop her..."

With that, he stood up and turned to face the Shadow, uttering only one word

"Persona"

**GYM**

"Yukiko, please stop!" Chie pleaded for what seemed like the fortith time, but the girl continued to attack

"Agi!" Yukiko called out as Konohana-Sakuya fired a ball of fire which Chie managed to dodge by the skin of her teeth

"Yukiko..." Chie muttered _"I don't have a choice...I have to fight back..."_

"What's wrong?! Waiting on your little boyfriend to come and save you?!" Yukiko mocked as her Persona fired several more blasts "You're just standing there, like a moth to a flame"

"I don't want to fight you..." Chie claimed "But...I will if I have to!"

"So you're going to give it your all? You're not going to hold back?" Yukiko laughed "But that's going to be difficult for you...because if you beat me, you're probably going to have to fight Yu-kun"

"W-Why would I fight with Yu?!" Chie questioned

"Well, for starters, because you're a terrible friend" Yukiko mocked "And second, because the Prince needs to cut down all in their path"

"What are you saying?" Chie asked

"You're the Prince, Chie" Yukiko giggled "This whole tournament is for you..."

"W-What?!" Chie gasped

"Fighting with all your friends, fitting for such a horrible person like you" Yukiko laughed

"Yukiko, listen to me, it isn't like that!" Chie cried "Can't you even hear a word I'm saying?!"

Yukiko only smiled in response

_"Hate...Abuse..." Rise's voice rang through "Fight...Everyone and their friends...MUST KILL EACH OTHER!"_

"Konohana-Sakuya!" Yukiko yelled, firing a torrent of flames at Chie, who used a nearby stack of chairs as a Shield "What?!"

Just as the flames vanished, Chie lobbed the chair at Yukiko, who swiped it away, leaving her wide open

"I'm sorry..." Chie muttered, before delivering her trademark Galactic Punt right to Yukiko's gut

"Argh!" Yukiko gugled as she was knocked back and fell to the ground

...

"Yukiko...the Yukiko...I know would never...say those things, despite how angry she was..." Chie muttered as her fallen friend laid before her "I'm sorry..."

_"Aa~aah! That really left a bad taste in my mouth" Rise groaned "Every last one of them...even though I've gone to such great lengths to liven things up...well, let's just see how long they last..."_

"Yukiko..." Chie muttered as the girl began to awaken "Are you..."

"Chie..." Yukiko muttered "You're...back to normal?"

"What do you mean?" Chie asked

"Saying all those horrible things..." Yukiko mumbled as she looked away "I know Yu-kun really loves you...you don't have to mock me because I thought he liked me instead..."

"I never did any of that!" Chie claimed "You're the one saying that I was a horrible friend! That Yu-kun was pathetic for wanting a piece of trash like me!"

"I...I never said any of that!" Yukiko defended as she stood up

"It's beginning to sound like we had two different conversations..." Chie muttered

...

"Maybe...neither of us really said those things..." Yukiko said softly as she looked away

"I would never say those things to you" Chie claimed

"I wouldn't say that to you either..." Yukiko admitted

"You said...this whole tournament was for me" Chie recalled "What did you mean?"

"I said that?" Yukiko asked "I...don't recall that"

"Ugh, what is going on?!" Chie grumbled as she rubbed her head "First, Adachi-san, Yumi and Ayane-chan showed up on the TV, then you, Kou and Daisuke were kidnapped and now...

...

I...even if you hate me now, I...I'm glad you're okay"

"I don't hate you..." Yukiko said to her "I am a little...let down that you're with Yu-kun instead of me and you chose to hide it...but...if you're really happy with him, then I'm happy for you...you're my best friend Chie. All I want for you is to be happy..."

"Yukiko..." Chie sniffed before wrapping her best friend in a hug

And then both girls felt a jolt run through their bodies, and their Persona's floated up and transformed

_Chie and Yukiko's strong will that allowed them to accept and overcome their weakness have awakened their heart's true power...Their Persona's have been reborn! __**Tomoe **__has transfigured into __**Suzuka Gongen **__and __**Konahana-Sakuya **__has become __**Amaterasu!**_

Both girls looked up and stared in awe at their new Persona's. What they failed to notice however, were the small balls of golden light that floated up to the ceiling and faded through...

"What...is this?" Chie questioned

"I heard Teddie...or rather, that fake Teddie say that only the winner can move on ahead..." Yukiko muttered before pointing to the door "You don't have time to be chatting with me right now! Ichijo-kun, Nagase-kun, Adachi-san, Yumi-san, Ayane-san...you have to protect them Chie!"

...

"I will" Chie smiled at her friend "Leave it to me!"

**CLASSROOM**

"**COME ON!**" The inhuman monster that was Shadow Yumi roared "**Is that really the best you can do?!**"

"Yumi..." Yu groaned as he held the bleeding cut on his arm

"S...Stop..." Yumi mumbled

"**Shut it!**" Shadow Yumi snapped "**Don't you get it?! I'm doing you a favor! I'm killing this little heartbreaker!**"

"No...that's not..." Yumi tried to get out

"**Why are you trying to stop me?!**" The Shadow roared "**He doesn't love you! So he should die! Just like that pathetic piece of shit father of ours!**"

"No...I...don't want Yu-kun to die!" Yumi pleaded

"**What is with you?!**" Shadow Yumi snapped

"Just because his feelings were different from mine...it doesn't mean he should die" Yumi whimpered "Dad...despite everything he did, didn't deserve to die either"

"**What are you saying?!**" Shadow Yumi snapped "**Everyone who doesn't love us...should just die!**"

"No that's not it!" Yumi snapped back "Dad...was happy in the end...and Yu-kun...I know he's happy with someone"

"Yumi..." Yu muttered

"I can't...force someone to love me" Yumi stated "Yu-kun...belongs to someone else"

"**What is with you?!**" Shadow Yumi snapped "**Why...why don't you want him dead?!**"

_SLASH_

The Shadow cried out in pain, as Yu took this opportunity to have Izanagi slash the Shadow, causing blood to spurt out

"I was so angry when Yu-kun didn't return my feelings...only to realize...Dad must of been so upset when he heard those things I said about him" Yumi stated "Love...whether it's mutual or unrequited...can change a person"

"**Shut up!**" The Shadow roared

"Yu-kun...doesn't love me...and maybe I was just relying on him in a time of need" Yumi revealed "Maybe I didn't love him afterall...but I know Dad truly loved me...and no one deserves to suffer for it either way! I have to accept those facts"

"**You...**" The Shadow began to snap before its demonic form eroded away, revealing the Shadow in the form of Yumi

"You know this too don't you?...you're me after all" Yumi smiled sweetly

...

The Shadow silently nodded before it vanished and in it's place stood a red horse-like figure with a long flowing silver mane and angel wings

_Yumi Ozawa has faced her true self and has gained the power of overcoming life's hardships, the Persona "Hoderi-no-Mikoto"_

"What...is this?" Yumi questioned as a tarot card marked with the Sun Arcana

"It's your Pe-Yumi!" Yu cried out as he caught the girl who fell feint

"Yu...kun" Was all she got out before collapsing

"Sorry..." Yu apologized as he laid her down "I need to go...but I'll be back for you..."

**HALLWAY**

"Miss President! You don't have to rush!" Teddie moaned as he chased after her

"If ya got a problem then spit it out already!" She groaned

"Ooh, you're beary grumpy! Let's make it more fun by talking while we go!" Teddie said affectionately

"Talkin'?" She questioned

"Yeah! For example..." Teddie smiled "Miss President, what's your name?"

"My name? It's-

...

I'm...I'm the Student council president..."

"Well, yeah?" Teddie shrugged "I know that, but..."

"What's goin' on...I...I can't remember nothin' else..." She muttered as she clutched her head "Just...what am I doin' here?"

"Miss...President?" Teddie questioned

"I can't remember nothin'...I don't remember...No that's wrong, I...I...aaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA**AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!**"

"Miss President, what's wrong!?" Teddie cried

"Wrong...It's wrong...I don't wanna fight any more! I don't wanna hafta kill my sisters!" She cried as she dashed down the hall

**FIRST FLOOR HALLWAY**

"Senpai!" Rise cried out as she dodged another swing from him

"Listen to me!" Mitsuru cried out as she was held back by an invisible wall "That boy isn't your friend! It's something posing as him!"

"That...can't be right!" Rise stated

"You have no choice but to fight it!" Mitsuru stated

"I can't! My Persona isn't a combat type!" Rise stated

"It may just be!" Mitsuru shouted "There was a time when I was unaware that my Persona had combat abilities too...you must try!"

"My...My Persona?" Rise questioned as she summed Himiko "Can it really...?"

Just as she stated to question it, her Persona began to morph. The radar dish opened up, revealing a face and long red hair, the Persona's dress-like garment transformed into a cape, reavling a black body and several small radars on the Persona floated off and produced energy shields that surrounded the Persona

"I...my Persona..." Rise muttered "I...can fight?"

**HALLWAY**

"Damn it!" Yosuke roared as he stormed down the halls "The layout of the school...everything's different...I-"

Yosuke continued to complain on and on, until he reached a small stretch of hall, where he spotted a small bundle, hudled on the floor

"Ayane!" He cried over as he ran over to girl _"What happened? Did one of the others take care of her shadow?"_

"Hey Ayane!" Yosuke cried as she tried to shake the girl awake "Wake up! Come on!"

Yosuke continued to try to awaken her, until he began to fear the worst

"Oh no...Ayane?" He asked as he placed his fingers to the little girls neck

And found no pulse...

**SECOND FLOOR HALLWAY**

"Yu!" Chie called out as he spotted him

"Chie!" He shouted as he walked over "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, I ran into Yukiko..." Chie muttered

"Oh..." Yu responded

"We...worked things out" Chie smiled "And...my Persona transformed"

"Your Persona?" Yu questioned before Chie summoned Suzuka-Gongen "Whoa! What the!"

"Yeah..." Chie nodded "It changed after me and Yukiko talked..."

"She's okay...with us?" Yu questioned

"Y-Yeah..." Chie nodded quietly

"Right...that's good" Yu sighed

"Are...you okay?" Chie asked

"I took care of Yumi's shadow" Yu informed "That's all sorted out...

"Oh" Chie nodded "That's good"

"So...all that's left is what's behind the door" Yu pointed

"You...feel it too, huh?" Chie asked

"Yeah..." Yu confirmed before pushing open the door and spotting "K-Kou!"

"Ichijo?!" Chie questioned before she ran in after him and the two found the boy

"You...you two" Kou muttered

"Kou, listen-" Yu began, but the words Kou heard were not the ones that actually left Yu's mouth "You didn't actuaully think you had a chance with her did you?"

"Huh? Hey! Y-You son of a...!" Kou snappd

"Oh boy, here he goes again" Chie sighed as she latched onto Yu's arm "Whining little runt...take care of him for me, will you?"

"Of couse my dear" Yu smiled before planting a wet one on Chie's lips

"Stop it!" Kou snapped as Yu and Chie practically made out infront of him

"Oh my, not here Yu-kun" Chie giggled as Yu began to unzip her jacket "We have an audience"

"Oh yeah...will you please leave us?" Yu asked Kou "I'd like to have sex with my girlfriend, and I'd prefer to do it without an audience"

"You...You fucking bastard!" Kou swore "Are you just doing this to mock me?!"

"My body is for Yu-kun's eyes only" Chie giggled as she shrugged off her jacket and Yu opened his shirt "At the very least, look away"

"Stop it, both of you!" Kou snapped as tears stinged his eyes

"Oh, Yu..." Chie moaned as Yu kissed her neck before clawing away the back of her shirt, tearing it off, revealing her bare back along with her bra-strap

"Stop it!" Kou roared as Chie tore off Yu's shirt and the two fell on the ground

"Oh yes..." Chie moaned as Yu peeled her bike shorts off

"No, damn it!" Kou roared as he closed his eyes

"No underwear, my, my..." Yu chuckled "Dirty girl..."

"Stop it, stop it!" Kou roared as he covered his ears

"Oh yes, that's it!" Chie gasped as Yu slipped into her "Oh yes, yes, yes!"

"**STOP IT!**"

"Kou!" The real Yu snapped "Calm down! Listen to us!"

"You two...just die already!" Kou roared "**PERSONA!**"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	12. The Ultimax

**THE ULTIMAX**

"Kou, stop!" Yu shouted as Kou's Persona took aim at him

"Yu-kun!" Chie cried out as she was held back by an invisible wall

"You bastard!" Kou roared as Raijin fired a bolt of lightning at Yu, who rolled to avoid it

"What's going on?" Yu questioned Chie "We were just talking and then he went berserk on us"

"Yu-kun...I...I think it's the same thing that happened to Yukiko!" Chie called out to him "She suddenly turned on me, like she became a completely different Person"

"What do you mean?" He asked

"Yukiko said some things I never expected to hear from her, and afterwards, she said that I was the one saying strange things" Chie explained "It sounded like our senses were being minipulated, like we were having two different conversations!"

"Is that what's happened?" Yu questioned as he turned to Kou "If that's the case, then Kou's probably just heard some pretty nasty stuff from me...Chie?"

"Yeah?"

"How did you snap Yukiko out of it?"

"I beat her in a fight..." Chie stated

"I see..." Yu muttered before summoning his Persona "Come on...Kou"

**HALLWAY**

"No, no, no, no, no, hang on Ayane!" Yosuke cried as he dashed down the halls with the small girl in his arms "Damn it, where the hell is the exit?!"

"Yosuke?" Came a voice he recognized as Teddie

"Teddie!" Yosuke shouted as he ran over to him "Teddie, can you make an exit?"

"Wha?"

"CAN YOU MAKE AN EXIT?!" Yosuke roared

"N-N-No, not here" Teddie stated "I tried to but something blocking me...Yosuke, who is that?"

"It's one of the people who were thrown in here" Yosuke stated quickly "I...I dunno what happened, I don't know if her shadow appeared or what but she's not breathing, I-"

"No..." Teddie muttered as he looked at girl "I don't feel anything from her...she didn't get a Persona and there's no energy within her whatsoever..."

"What do you mean?" Yosuke asked

"I...Ayane-chan is so young and innocent, she didn't even have a shadow in the first place..." Teddie revealed "Spending all this time in this fog must've..."

"Damn it!" Yosuke roared as took off again, finally stumbling upon the entrance of the school

"Ah, Yosuke! Wait up!" Teddie cried out as he chased after him before the boy suddenly stopped "Huh? You actually waited for m-"

"Oh, no..." Yosuke muttered as he looked as situation before him, blocking the door was... "Adachi-san!"

"H-Huh?" Adachi questioned the mention of his name

"**Hey, what're you doing, ignoring me**?"

And then there was Adachi's company...

"Adachi-san's...shadow" Teddie muttered

"Hey, you two, what's going on here?" Adachi asked, indeed ignoring his shadow "What's with this place? It's all-"

"**Hey, dumbass, ignoring people is what got you sent down to the boonies in the first place**" Shadow Adachi sneered

"And just who the hell are you?!" Adachi snapped, twisting his head to face his doppelganger

"**I keep telling you, I'm you...**" He stated

"Yeah, sure buddy" Adachi scoffed "Unless you're my secret identical twin, I'm pretty sure I don't know who you are"

"**But I know who you are...**" Shadow Adachi chuckled "**Bottom of the class, failure at everything, such a disappointment**"

"What...what are you saying?" Adachi questioned

"**The only reason we took this job was to make our folks happy, but in the end, they thought we were a failure too**" The Shadow scoffed "**Why else would they split up?**"

"What the hell does that have to do with anything?!" Adachi snapped

"**You ruin everything...**" Shadow Adachi scoffed "**No one cares for you...you've never helped a single person in your life...you're useless, pathetic, a sad excuse for humanity**"

"That's a lie!" Adachi shouted "None of that is true!"

"Adachi-san-" Yosuke tried to calm him down

"**Admit it, you know you suck! You know that you have no place in this world! You're worthless!**"

"No!" Adachi roared "None of that...it's not true"

"**It is**" The Shadow smiled "**And you know how I know?**"

"Adachi-san, don't listen to him!" Yosuke shouted

"**It's because I'm you...**"

...

"Bullshit..." Adachi murmured before he roared "That's utter bullshit! You're not me! You're nothing like me!"

"Adachi-san, no!" Teddie cried out

"**Well...now that we got that out of the way**" The Shadow chuckled "**Let's get this started, shall we?**"

"Teddie...look after her" Yosuke stated sternly as handed Ayane to her "I'll take care of this"

**FIRST FLOOR HALLWAY**

"I can...fight?"

"Listen" Mitsuru called out before she her words cut out "What the?"

_"Quite a chatterbox, aren't you?" Came the giggle of _Rise _as she appeared on the TV screen_

"W-Who are you?!" The real Rise shouted

_"That doesn't matter, all I'm here to say is; no outside interference allowed!" She piped "So that little invisible wall that buxom redhead is behind is now soundproof!"_

"What?!" Mitsuru shouted "Rise, can you hear me?!"

"W-Wha?" Rise questioned "Mitsuru-san...your mouth is moving, but..."

"Damn it!" Mitsuru shouted before using her Persona to try and contact her "Rise, can you-"

_"It hurts..."_

_"So lonely..."_

_"It...really hurts"_

_"Why...don't ya get it?"_

"Is...this voice?" Mitsuru questioned "It's a faint presence, I can't tell where it's coming fron, yet I can hear a voice..."

_"What's the difference...between my heart...and a normal person's?"_

_"I didn't ask to be born as a machine!"_

"Is that...Labrys?!" Mitsuru gasped

_"Ain't there some other way?"_

_"I don't wanna..."_

_"I DON'T WANNA FIGHT THEM NO MORE!"_

"Labrys, can you hear me?!" Mitsuru shouted

"Mitsuru-san, what's wrong?!" Rise cried before feeling a presence right behind her. She swiftly jumped to the left, avoiding an attack from Izanagi

"**You're no Chie...but you move well**" _Yu _sniggered

"Yu-senpai...The real Yu-senpai would never mock me, let alone attack me..." Rise stated as she stood proud "You're not him...which means that I don't have to hold back"

"**Heh, you really think that **_**you **_**stand a chance?!**" He laughed as he readied his sword "**None of you, apart from Chie, can do anything!**"

"You're wrong..." Rise stated as Himiko locked up with Izanagi

"**Hah, is that it?!**" _Yu_ laughed

"No, it's not!" Rise stated as she jumped forward, bringing her knee to Yu's jaw and took the oppertunity to yank the sword out of his hand then her Persona proceeded to blast Izanagi away with Bufudyne

"**Wha?!**" He roared, attempting to swing at her, but then realised that his sword had been robbed "**You bitch!**"

"The only person here who deserves to be insulted, is the bastard her impersonating my Senpai!" Rise snapped as Himiko flew forward and smacked the fake Yu into the invisible wall

_"Oh wow, that bear-ly took you anytime at all! I was looking for a grizzly fight, but you took care of Sensei in no time at all!"_

"It was...incredible for your first fight..." Mitsuru noted

"I...I've had some basic fight training" Rise admitted "I took some lessons for when some fan's get out of control..."

"I see..." Mitsuru hummed "I-wait, what is-"

"What is it?" Rise questioned before she looked in the same direction as Mitsuru, witnessing the Yu impostor melt away and small golden lights to float away "What the..."

"Those lights..." Mitsuru observed, using her Persona "Those are...fragments of your Persona!"

"What?!" Rise questioned

"Those small lights were small fragments of your Persona that were hacked off by that fake of your friends..." Mitsuru muttered "But where were they headed?"

...

"We need to go..." Mitsuru stated

"Where?" Rise asked "The layout of this school is completely different from the actual school"

"I need to find someone" Mitsuru said "And I think I may require your help..."

**CLASSROOM**

"Ziodyne!"

"Damn it!" Yu shouted as he dodged the lightning strikes

"Die! Die! Die!" Kou roared

"Kou..." Yu muttered "If this is about Chie..."

"Yu, I told you, he can't hear you!" Chie reminded

"Oh I hear you" Kou laughed "And yeah...it's about that, but at the same time, it's about so much more!"

"What do you mean?" Yu asked

"You look down on all of us, except her" Kou snorted "_You're _the hero, you're the one who gets the girl, only you two get to be heroes! The rest of us should just sit back and watch you two work away!"

...

"I guess that's what it meant by _Dragon-Lover with a God-Complex_..." Yu muttered

"Exactly!" Kou snapped "I'll do the world a favor and kill you both!"

"Both of us...even Chie?" Yu glared "The woman you love?"

"Hell yeah! What good is that bitch if she'd want you over me!" Kou laughed

...

"Yeah...you're not Kou" Yu stated as he readied his blade "I want you to know...no matter what...you're my friend"

...

"Wha..." Kou groaned as he clutched his head, gazing up at the ceiling

"You're awake..." Yu noted

"Is he...back to his regular self?" Chie asked

"Listen, we think your senses were being manipulated" Yu explained "Whatever we said to you, we didn't actually say..."

"So...you two weren't doing..." He muttered "You..."

"Listen...I know that things are...complicated right now" Yu sighed

"Just...go" Kou muttered as he turned his head away from them "Isn't it enough that you stole her, now you have to humiliate me infront of her?"

...

"I didn't steal her Kou" Yu said "She...chose me"

"Shut up" Kou muttered

"Ichijo" Chie sounded "Even if Yu-kun hadn't told me about how he feels...even if I never even met him...I...us...it never would've happened. I don't feel that way about you. That wouldn't have changed"

"You two...really don't give a damn about me, do you?" Kou spat

"Yes we do!" Chie stated "We're friends..."

"Not anymore..." Kou muttered "From now on, consider our relationship strictly professional"

"What do you mean?" Yu asked

"I'm still part of the Investigation Team...when someone is kidnapped and thrown into the TV World, I'll be the first to leap in and try to save them. But that's the only time we'll interact. Don't even talk to me at school...we're not friends"

...

"If that's what you want" Yu sighed

"Yu!" Chie gasped

"Come on Chie..." Yu stated as he began to exit the room "We still have to save the others"

...

"Okay..." Chie nodded as she and Yu left the room, both feeling their bond with Kou irreversibly broken

...

"Damn it..." Kou quietly sobbed

* * *

"Who do we still need to find?" Chie asked as the two ran down a hall

"Ayane-san, Adachi-san, Daisuke and The Student Council President" Yu stated "In all honesty, I think this may be Ms. President's world..."

"Wait...The Student Council President? _Ms. _President?" Chie questioned "What're you talking about? Our Student Council President is a guy..."

"Huh? That can't be right" Yu objected "I met her"

"I'm tellin' you dude" Chie sighed

"But...then..." Yu muttered "Who is she?"

"I believe I may know whom you are speaking of" An unfamiliar voice called out to them

"Huh, who're you?" Chie asked the unfamiliar face

"My apologies for not introducing myself" She apologized "I am Seventh Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon; Aigis"

"Uh...who?" Chie asked

"I am a member of the Shadow Operatives" She explained "I believe you are familiar with my companion; Katsuya Suou"

"You're a Shadow Operative?" Yu questioned "You look...no offence...odd"

"Yes, my appearance would look strange to a regular human" Aigis noted

"You speak like...you're...not..." Chie gaped "Are...are you a...robot?"

"Technically speaking; yes" Aigis nodded

"Whoa!" Chie gasped "A-An actual android! No way!"

"That...can't be true" Yu noted "I mean...that technology just doesn't exist"

"I understand your doubts, will this suffice as proof of my true nature?" Aigis asked he arm transformed into a Gatling cannon

...

"She's an android!" Yu said to Chie

"Indeed" Aigis nodded "Now, I believe that woman you are talking of is my sister...Labrys"

* * *

"Damn it!" Yosuke cried as he dodged another strike from the red veiny monster that was Shadow Adachi

"**What's wrong?!**" Shadow Adachi laughed as it blocked Susano-o

_"Aww, Yosuke-senpai, what's wrong?!" Came the mocking voice of Rise from a monitor "Are you scared of looosiiing~? That's so uncool! Now Ayane is going to die! Just like Saki!"_

...

"You're not the real Rise..." Yosuke muttered "Because the real one would know...that I would never give up when someone's life is at stake!"

_"Heh...heheheheheheh! What a bunch of make-believe! One way or another, only the winner can advance! And if you lose, it'll be nothing but suffering for the rest of your life!"_

"Shut up!" Yosuke roared, Shadow Adachi proceeded to take advantage of the situation and blast Yosuke away, sending him back first into a wall

"Yosuke!" Teddie cried out

"**Still don't know when to quit, do you?!**" Shadow Adachi spat as Yosuke pulled himself up "**Try and try again and you'll fail everytime!**"

...

"I'm so sick of being told what I can and can't do..." Yosuke groaned as he pulled himself up "I'm serious, I'm so sick of it...I'm just gonna slash away at you until you shut up!"

"Yosuke!" Teddie cried out as Yosuke once again summoned Susano-o "No! You don't have enough energy left! Your body can't take it!"

"Kid...stop it" Adachi groaned

"No, I'm not stopping!" Yosuke roared "I'm gonna save Ayane and you too Adachi-san!"

"W-Why?" Adachi asked

"Because...only we can, we're not gonna let anyone else die!" Yosuke shouted "I won't let another one die...even if...I have to"

_"He's...going this far?...For me?" Adachi questioned_

"Yosuke, stop!" Teddie screamed

"I'll use the wind itself to rip you apart!" Yosuke yelled to the heavens "GARUDYNE!"

"**What the hell is this?!**" Shadow Adachi shouted "**Dumbass! If you use a large wind blast in a small place like this, it'll do more damage to you than me!**"

"Yosuke, stop!" Teddie pleaded

"No...I'll do anything" Yosuke muttered as Susano-o began the spell "To save ano-"

_BOOM _

"Y-Yosuke!" Adachi called off as the large wind blast sent both combatants flying into oppisite sides of the invisible wall. Blood poured from Yosuke, the razor wind having sliced him all over his body

"**I...Idiot!**" Shadow Adachi cursed as he tried to pull himself up "**You're dead...you little-**"

"Enough!" Adachi called out "Enough already...I get it now..."

"Adachi-san?" Teddie questioned

"Everything...he said was true" Adachi admitted "I do feel useless...unwanted...but...if Yosuke-kun is willing to go so far for me...then how useless can I be?"

"**You...**" Shadow Adachi growled

"I can help...and I'll start by helping save this little girls life!" Adachi stated "And you're in the way! I know you're me already, so just hurry up and let us move on!"

...

The shadow stared blankly at him before disapating and above where if once laid was a Persona identical to Yu's Izanagi except Red, covered in yellow veins and holding is Naginata in a reverse grip

_Tohru Adachi has faced his other self and has obtained the facade to overcome life's hardships, The Persona; __**Magastu Izanagi**_

"This..." Adachi muttered as a tarot card of the Lust arcana floated down into his hand

"Yosuke!" Teddie cried out as he ran over to boy who was lying in a pool of his own blood

"You, bear!" Adachi called out as he ran over to Yosuke and picked him up "Take the little girl out of here, I'll-"

"Adachi-san!" Teddie cried as Adachi began to stumble

"I'm fine, just hurry!" Adachi shouted "Take her outta here and get her to the hospital, I'll follow with Yosuke-kun!"

* * *

"A weapon with a heart?!" Chie gasped

"Then...this world has changed the way she looks..." Yu noted "It made her look...human"

"This world...it is hers" Chie sighed "She...thinks she's the Student Council President and so her world is a school..."

"Katsuya stated that these worlds are created from the heart of the person whom is thrown into the TV..." Aigis stated "If this is the case, then-"

"This Grand Prix is her doing!" Chie said in a moment of realization

"But what if you say is true...how would Labrys know about this school?" Yu asked "If she's been sealed way for years. then how does she even know what this school looks like?"

"All this raises questions..." Chie grumbled "Like...who threw her into the TV?"

"She was abducted by a culprit we believe to be Sho Minazuki." Aigis explained

"Katsuya mentioned that name..." Yu noted "But even so, we couldn't find anybody by that name"

"If this Minazuki guy really is behind everything, then I'm going to give him a such a pounding!" Chie growled as she smacked her fist into her other hand

"If this really is her world...then..." Yu muttered

"Her shadow should be located in the school..." Chie finished her sentence

**FIRST FLOOR HALLWAY**

"And if we find it...then this Grand Prix will be finished!" Rise gasped

"If what you say about her...shadow self is true..." Mitsuru muttered "Then yes, it will be finished once we find it"

_"I hear ya, you two are so troublesome..." Came General Teddie's voice _

_"Oh, did you just break character?" The fake Rise questioned "You're such a bad actor, if you're going to do it, then do it right!...And you, that dreadful Risette? I'm gonna sue you for appropriating my likeness!"_

"Like hell! _I'm _the real Rise!" Rise snapped

_"__**AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!**__"_

"W-What was that?!" Mitsuru gasped

_"The Grand Prix will soon be coming to an end..." General Teddie laughed _

"What the hell is with you?!" Rise shouted "And don't say it's because you like to see people suffer! Because that would be super tacky!"

_"Worried?" General Teddie laughed "Then come on down to the announcement room and we'll have a little talk"_

"The announcement room?" Rise questioned

**HALLWAY**

_"No! No!...I'm...I'm the student council president! I was chosen! I was elected to be the President by everyone! That's why..."_

_**"Activating"**_

_**"Main system's operational"**_

_**"That's odd, an accent?"**_

**"Do you understand the word's comin' outta my mouth?!"**

_**"Beginning combat test"**_

**"They call me Unit #31...the little dog is called snowy"**

**"I..."**

_"These...memories...and that past...they ain't true!"_

**ANNOUNCEMENT ROOM**

"Labrys!" Yu called out as he stormed into the room

"Oh my, it seems _you _got here first" General Teddie chuckled

"No way, it really is a fake Teddie..." Chie gasped

"Oh my...calling me a fake is so cruel Chie-chan" General Teddie growled as his eyes went blank "My appearance is based on my ability to manipulate the things you see...and the things you hear!"

"So Chie was right..." Yu noted

"I guess you could say that I fooled _everyone _with this power, pretty well" The bear laughed "But wasn't the Grand Prix fun?"

"It was a dirty trick!" Chie snapped

"Oh? But you're both here because you won, didn't you?" General Teddie laughed "Chie-chan, why do you think Yuki-chan said that this Grand Prix was for you? Didn't you enjoy being the hero?"

"W-Wha?!" Chie gasped

"But then, to be honest, you were a big let down. I thought I could watch you and your ugly friends have those fights for a bit longer" General Teddie sighed before turning to the door "Right? You think so too, don't you?"

"What?" Yu questioned before he turned in the same direction and notice the girl who just entered the room "L...Labrys..."

"I...I ain't..." She panted

"This was your wish, wasn't it?" General Teddie laughed "You wanted to go to School...to make understand. Isn't that why there's a fighting tournament in the school?"

"N-No!" Labrys denied

"Don't try to deny it...you know who I am" General Teddie grinned before he began to bubble and melt away and in his place, was a girl in a Yasogami High uniform, with silver hair and red eyes. And a robotic body "**I am a Shadow, the true self!**"

"T-That's my face!" Labrys gasped

"So...it was her shadow" Yu noted

"M-My Shadow, what the heck is that?!" Labrys questioned "Besides...ain't that a robot body?!"

"**I am a reflection of your heart, the robot standing before you **_**is **_**you!**" Shadow Labrys stated

"You're wrong!" Labrys cried as she clutched her head "I'm Human!"

_**BOOM**_

"Whoa!" Chie yelped as the wall beside then blasted open and debris went flying everywhere

"I wasn't sure since I detected a Shadow..." She stated as she stepped in through the new hole in the wall "But...I found you at last, sister!"

"Aigis-san...there was a door" Yu meekly stated

"Do not be fooled, you have the power to combat this shadow!" Aigis stated as she outstretched her arm to Labrys

"How...how do ya know who I am?" Labrys asked as Aigis pulled her up

"Your true name..." Aigis stated "is Fifth Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon. _Labrys_..."

_"Although you could say it's got a soul, it's not much different from an object"_

_"Tell us any abnormalities you're feeling in your sensors and other functions"_

_"The data of the bodies of the other units she destroyed in the previous battles..."_

_"But if it possesses individuality, then its mind must be complete"_

_"Was than an accent? The base's personality coming out?"_

"Is...this a laboratory?" Labrys questioned "These people...are they researchers?"

"_You are a weapon. That was created to fight a certain kind of enemy. You were given a certain degree of _soul_ for the purpose of implementing a special ability"_

_"Because that ability can't always be put into numbers and compared"_

_**"COMMENCING FIELD TEST"**_

_"We will have you fight your fellow test models, carryin' out testing and selection at the same time"_

"So many of my friends...fight with 'em, again an' again...I...killed them?"

_"The fear impulse and self-preservation instinct seem to to be the key to activating a Persona...Therefore, from this point on, your mission will be to survive and fight the remaining units of your model type and then...__**destroy them**__"_

"C-Come on! Ain't there some other way?!"

_"Amazing...I didn't think its personality would develop this fast!"_

_Let's compare the data and look at which stages they improve at"_

"I don't..."

_"Set up Unit #31 to go in with her"_

"I don't wanna..."

_"What are you waiting for? Kill her already"_

"I don't wanna fight 'em no more!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Labrys screamed as she clutched her head

"What's wrong?!" Yu cried

"Aigis-san, what's going on?!" Chie questioned

"She...appears to have regained her memories" Aigis stated sadly "But she is my sister...she will endure..."

"N-No way..." Labrys gasped as her _skin _glitched off and her robotic body was revealed "I...I ain't human?"

"I am the Seventh Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, Aigis. A model that came after you" Aigis said to her "You were stolen away but I came this far to look for you...now then...let's go home"

"**Go home? You sure about that?!**" Shadow Labrys scoffed "**Didn't the Kirijo group come to seize me? To steal away my freedom once again?!**"

"You are wrong!" Aigis stated "I-"

"**What a heartless sister...forgetting was her only escape route too...**" Shadow Labrys sighed "**In order to create **_**me**_**, a weapon capable of handling a Persona, they forced me to fight **_**my sisters**_**...but then I developed a **_**heart **_**even greater than what those humans thought possible...if we received orders then we had to kill each other, even if the experiment was over and there was no real reason too...I...killed Unit #31! My best friend! With my own hands!**"

...

"This Minazuki guy...stole her from this?" Yu questioned

"Yes...however, we did not come here to bring her back to that inhuman laboratory" Aigis explained "These things they once did...I will never allow them to do it again!"

"**How laughable, pitying me like that**" Shadow Labrys laughed as she walked over to her real self "**Wasn't it **_**so **_**painful to be made to fight your sisters? Weren't you **_**so **_**sad? Someone who hasn't expierenced those memories could never understand! That's why you opened this fighting tournament! That's why you made everyone just how horrible it is to fight your friends! You wanted to make them all realize! But y'know...it doesn't look they despaired like I did...even my **_**little sisters **_**never fell to their knees like you!**

**IT'S BECAUSE I AM ALONE! I AM NOT HUMAN! AND THERE'S NOWHERE I BELONG! THERE'S NO WAY I COULD GET ANYONE TO UNDERSTAND MY FEELINGS, LIKE HAVING NO PURPOSE AND NOT FITTING IN ANYWHERE!**"

"Nuh uh...no way..." Labrys stuttered "I...I'm the Student Council President that everybody elected!"

"**Then where is **_**everyone**_**? I don't seem them hanging around?**" Shadow Labrys questioned before looking behind her "**Oh...now that you mentioned it...**"

"W-What the hell?!" Chie gasped as the room lit up, revealing a mass of broken human-looking machinery, dangling from chains from the roof

**"They're alllll broken, huh?**" Shadow Labrys laughed "**All of them...every last one...by my own hand**"

"No!" Labrys roared "I...I'm-!"

"No! Don't say it!" Yu shouted out

"What so you mean?!" Aigis questioned

"When you're inside the TV, your suppressed feelings split from you and create a Shadow" Chie explained "When you deny it, the shadow gains power and freedom from your body!"

"No...I...I didn't break 'em...that was you!" Labrys shouted "You...ain't...you just..."

"Labrys, no!" Yu shouted

"YOU AIN'T ME!"

"**AHAHAHAHAHA!**" Shadow Labrys laughed "**You denied me! And now I'm free!**"

"Sister!" Aigis cried out as she caught the collapsing Labrys

"Once it becomes free...the shadow becomes stronger" Chie explained as a large bull-like monster appeared behind Shadow Labrys "And then it will try to kill it's original and take its place"

...

"To go through all that..." Yu muttered "Labrys...had a pretty hard life..."

"I understand what it is like" Aigis stated "Having a painful past...and not being human, but now...I have friends, and now that I'm with her, so does my sister!"

"All I know is...is we can accept ourselve, then so can see!" Chie cheered

"I'm finishing this!" Yu roared as he summoned his Persona "I'll free Labrys from her painful past!"

"Yu...san" Aigis muttered, staring at the boy, she could of sworn that for a single moment, she saw the figure of Minato Arisato...

"**You're going to fight **_**me**_**?! You're joking right?!**" Shadow Labrys laughed before pulling off a Giganitic axe from her back and lunged forward

_**CLANG**_

"Aigis-san!" Yu gaped as Aigis blocked the axe

"Yu-san...may I be of aid in this fight?" Aigis asked "I too, wish to free my sister..."

"Of course!" Yu nodded "Come on Labrys!"

"I'm helping too!" Chie stated as he stepped on the front line with them

_**BANGBANGBANGBANG!**_

"Holy crap!" Yu cried as he covered his ears as Aigis' gatling cannon's fired out

"**UWOHHHHHHHHHH!**" Shadow Labrys roared

"Ineffective" Aigis noted before unleashing her missile launchers

"I don't think we're even needed for this!" Chie yelped

"**What?**" An unfazed Shadow Labrys laughed "**Was that all you g-**"

"Izanagi!" Yu called out as he Persona homed in and attempted a strike that was dodged, Shadow Labrys then used her proceed to use her large axe to essentially bat the Persona away. However, she proceeded to leave herself wide open and Chie took this opportunity to deliver her trademark Galatic Punt to the Shadow's face

"Satonaka-san, get back!" Aigis called

"Wha-" Chie began to question, before Shadow Labrys' bull-like monster arose from the ground and tossed her into the ceiling

"Chie!" Yu yelled as the girl proceeded to fall back to the ground, Izanagi catching her before she hit the concrete

"**Y'know, trying to save your friends life is soooo lovely**" Shadow Labrys laughed "**But you, some Kung-Fu obsessed chick and that inferior model can't do anything!**"

"Damn it!" Yu roared as he charged forward

"**Asterius!**" The Shadow roared as the bull-like monster charged an energy blast in its mouth, blasting Yu and Aigis back "**You're weak! WEAK! Did you all get cocky since you managed to make it this far?! I was the one who showed you those illusions, those illusions to hurt you...you say it's hard to face yourself? You're not the best at facing yourself, are you?!**"

...

"Is that right?" Yu questioned "I didn't face my shadow like everyone else...so maybe, yeah...I don't know anything about that...so-"

"Himiko!" Came a cry as a Persona appeared amongst the rest

"Wha-Rise-chan?!" Chie cried

"Rise...your Persona!" Yu gasped

"Don't let her get to you, Yu-senpai!" Rise stated as she and Mitsuru stormed into the room

"Mitsuru-san!" Aigis happily noted

"Listen to them!" Rise stated as Himiko transformed back into sensory mode

_"Hey, Senpai, what the hell are you waiting for?! Hurry and end this Grand Prix, we've been waiting forever, man!"_

"Kanji..." Yu muttered

_"The way your buddy speaks of you...you sound like someone I once knew, if anyone can do it, it's you...And you too Aigis!"_

"Akihiko..." Mitsuru whispered

_"Yu-kun, Chie, I know you can do it!" _

"Yukiko!" Chie gaped

_"Do...it, Yu-kun"_

_"I...I know you can!"_

"Yumi...Daisuke..." Yu murmered

_"You two...I know...you just won't give in"_

"Kou..." Chie muttered

_"We...believe in you..." Kou sighed_

_"Hell yeah!" Kanji roared_

_"You can do it!" Yumi stated _

_"I know you can!" Yukiko said _

_"Do it!" Daisuke roared_

_"END IT!" Akihiko yelled _

...

"We can do it..." Chie smiled "_You _can do it..."

...

"Not alone" Yu stated "I can only do this...with all of you by my side"

_CLINK_

"Wha-? Izanagi?" Yu questioned as her Persona appeared before and then proceed to morph...

_Yu Narukami's strong will and the bond he has made has awoken the strength within one's heart, his true power has awakened; __**Izanagi **__has become __**Izanagi-no-Okami!**_

...

"Izanagi...no-Okami?" Yu questioned as his brand new, white Persona stood before him

_"I am thou...and that art I...Yu Narukami"_

"You... can talk?!" Yu gasped

_"I am the representation of your strong will...so long as it remains, so shall I, my master"_

"Iza..." Yu muttered "You're..."

_"I am the flame that opens the path of my king...even if I am extinguished, I will have no regrets" Izanagi-no-Okami stated "Now my master, take my power, unleash the storm of my loyalty!"_

...

"Let's do this...Izanagi-no-Okami!"

"**Aww look at that, you got yourself a new friend!**" Shadow Labrys laughed "**Getting help from all of them...it's pathetic!**"

"Maybe it is...but that's just the guy I am!" Yu stated, full of determination "No matter what I run into, as long as I have them all by my side...there's nothing I can't do!"

...

"You're..." The real Labrys muttered

"**What great friends...but they're all just talk!**" Shadow Labrys mocked "**There's nothing you can do! No one can save you now!**"

"You're wrong...They've already saved me, more times than I can count" Yu stated as Izanagi-no-Okami spun its blade 360 degree's, forming a white circle of energy infront of it "That...is the Myriad Truth that you fail to see!"

"**Get him, Asterius!**" Shadow Labrys commanded

"It's already over..." Yu muttered as Izanagi-no-Okami fired the blast, complete enveloping the shadow

"Whoa!" Chie gasped

"A-Amazing!" Rise said in awe as the blast faded, leaving a massive hole where the wall used to be, as well as the defeated Shadow

"Incredible...it's power...I haven't felt a Persona this strong since Minato's Messiah..." Mitsuru observed

"If...you truly were born as a reflection of Labrys' heart, then you should know..." Aigis stated to the downed Shadow "Then you should know that bonds carried in one's heart can become incredible power...because for the longest time, my heart has been carrying weakness as well...it's over now..."

...

"**Come on...even when I thought I was finally free...pretending that I was friends with those guys, without a care in the world...even when I wanted them to see may pain...I...I don't...I don't have any friends to come and save me...!**"

...

"Sister?" Aigis questioned the real Labrys approached the Shadow

"I thought...going to school was a great idea...studying and laughing with everybody. That's why I thought I could make 'em understand our feelings" Labrys tearfully admitted as she fell to her knees "Although I'm a robot who duped herself into thinking she was the human student council president...the only thing I wanted to be was happy! If thing's'd stayed like that...It woulda been better if I'd just stayed broken..."

...

"Hey, Labrys..." Yu called out as he walked over to her "A while back...I was down in the dumps over my parents...I thought I was alone...but I was wrong"

Labrys stared at him at awe as the boy smiled at her and offered his hand

"Like I just said, when you have friends...you can do anything" Yu smiled

"But...I'm a weapon!" Labrys stated

"Make no difference to me..." Yu smiled as Labrys began to sob "You're my friends...you're _our _friend"

...

"I guess...I ain't alone after all" Labrys smiled as she took his hand "Even thought I'm a weapon...I still manged to make some friends...nah, that ain't right, _I_ didn't..."

Finally being pulled up by Yu, she turned to her shadow and smiled

"_We _did...after all...you're me..."

_SHINE_

"W-What's happenin'?" Labrys questioned as the Shadow faded away and a large figure stood before her

"It's your Persona" Yu explained "Now...you have the same power as us"

_Labrys has faced his other self and has obtained the facade to overcome life's hardships, The Persona; __**Asterius**_

"If it's over...the invisible walls should be gone!" Rise cheered

_"Hell yeah!" Kanji cheered, audible through Himiko_

_"Finally..." Daisuke sighed _

"The P-1 Grand Prix...is over" Chie sighed in relief

"Come on, it's time I introduced you to the others" Yu smiled at Labrys

"The fact that I'm weapon...doesn't matter to you" Labrys smiled "I-"

_"I wanna be the student council president...it's them whose' everyone looks up to"_

_"What?" Labrys questioned "what is this?"_

_"Labrys is unique, she'll be the first model based on a living person"_

_"Her personality, speech pattern, mannerisms, will all be transfered to her...it's almost as if this girl will live on as Labrys"_

_"So there putting my..._soul _into a robot? Kinda cool...I only hope...she's happy..."_

_"What's going on?" Labrys asked "I-Is this...the base? The woman I was based on?"_

"I-"

"Labrys, what's wrong?" Mitsuru asked

"Nothing...it's nothing" Labrys said with a shake of her head "Let's get outta here"

**TV WORLD STUDIO**

"That rounds up the introductions..." Mitsuru nodded as she finished introducing her, Akihiko and Aigis

"There's one thing I don't get..." Yukiko muttered "We never say Kanji-kun or Sanada-san after they ran into each other, what happened?"

"We decided to call it a draw" Akihiko shrugged "It was too good to call, we decided to just quit while we were ahead"

"I'll take that as a compliment" Kanji smirked

"So...where's Yosuke..." Chie asked "Adachi-san, Ayane-chan and Teddie are missing too"

"I don't feel them...they must've already left" Rise noted

"Why did he..." Yu began to ask

"Ah!"

"Labrys?" Aigis questioned "What is wrong?"

"N-Nothing..." Labrys stated as she clutched her hear "It's-"

_**"WHY DO YOU DESIRE TO BE HUMAN?"**_

_"W-What the?!" Labrys cried as her vision changed, she now saw herself standing in the middle of a classroom, surrounded by the gang from Inaba_

_"__**THIS IS A LIFE YOU DESIRED...YET IT IS ONE YOU CAN NEVER HAVE...WHY IS IT YOU WISH TO BECOME HUMAN? WHEN**_ _**HUMAN'S ARE THE POISON WHO MADE YOU DO THE HORRIBLE THINGS YOU DID?"**_

_"W-Who is this?!" Labrys cried "Show you'self!"_

_**"TO WHAT END IS BEING HUMAN? WHY DESIRE IT? HUMAN'S MADE YOU KILL...MURDER...SUFFER...ABANDON THAT PATH AND TAKE THE WORLD THAT HAS WRONGED YOU**_

_**I GAVE YOU THAT ILLUSION...AND THEY ROBBED IT AWAY...**_

_**HUMAN'S TOOK AWAY YOUR SALVATION...NOW MAKE THEM SUFFER"**_

"Labrys?! What's wrong?!" Mitsuru cried as the girl seemed to shut down

_**"NOW...ALL IS IN READYNESS"**_

The girl then lifted her head, her eyes blank and wicked smile on her face...and then came a voice from her mouth that did not belong to her

"**It's not over yet...**"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	13. Happy Birthday

**HAPPY BIRTHDAY**

_"__**It's not over yet!**__"_

"Labrys?!" Mitsuru questioned

"What's going on?!" Daisuke asked

"**To think you'd fight this feircly for her...now, I want your Persona's even more**"

"What's going on?" Akihiko asked Aigis

"This voice...it's not hers..." Aigis noted "It appears that...someone is speaking through her"

"**I didn't...didn'y...di-di-did-didn't-di...**" The Eerie Voice spoke through Labrys, who began to shake

_**GRAB**_

"Aigis-san!" Yu cried as Labrys grabbed her sister by the neck

"Something's...coiling around Labrys' body!" Rise shouted as she observed the scene with her Persona "Something's manipulating her!"

"**That's right, right now, she's nothing more than a puppet!**" The voice laughed "**But this is different from that half-hearted Grand Prix. So then, what will you do? Can you break this puppet into pieces to stop me?!**"

"Damn it, she's suffered enough!" Yu roared before summoning his Persona "Izanagi-no-O-ah...uhhrgh"

"Yu-kun!" Chie cried as she caught the boy before he fell to the ground

_**BAM**_

"You okay, Aigis?" Akihiko questioned after he blew Labrys away with a right hook

_"Mitsuru-san..."_

"Yamagishi" Mitsuru nodded

"Wait...this feeling, is this someone's Persona?!" Rise questioned "Seriously?! She can use hers in the real world!"

_"I sensed the disturbance within the TV World" Fuuka explained "The person controlling her. It's seems that they are not within the TV, but from another location"_

...

"So...you're the one behind everything" Mitsuru muttered "The one who stole her, threw her in the TV and implanted those fake memories within her!"

"**That's right...It was I who stole Labrys away...you see, she was necessary...**"

"Nessacery for what?!" Akihiko roared

"**I'm glad you asked that because now I can take the time to explain my evil plan!**" The voice laughed"**Persona's and shadows are one and the same, ** **And if I poison your hearts, then your Persona's will become Shadow's once more and then I can recruit shadows with relentless strength!**"

"What the hell are you saying, you bastard!?" Kanji roared

"**Even if you understood...you can't stop me**" The voice laughed "**All you can do now...is suffer!**"

"You...are you..." Akihiko began to question

"**Indeed...I am Sho Minazuki**" He cackled

"That guy the detective mentioned?!" Kanji questioned

"So you _are_ the one behind it all!" Chie snapped

"You bastard..." Mitsuru growled "You send for us and you don't even bother meeting us face to face?!"

"**It was a nice step to leave the guard dogs outside the TV so I couldn't follow you in...not that I couldn't even if I wanted to anyway...**" He laughed "**But onto business...Yu Narukami**"

"Huh?" The boy meekly questioned

"**The use of your new Persona has left you weak and vunerable**" The voice laughed as the possessed Labrys picked up her axe "**So I'll be taking it off your hands!**"

...

"That...ain't gonna happen!"

"**What?!**"

"Labrys-san!" Yukiko cried as the robotic girl began to struggle

"I...I finally got someone to understand my feelin's...so that's why..." Labrys grunted as she through down her axe and clutched her head, her right eye regaining color "I'm not gonna let them go through the same pain I did!...Because...Because...I finally have friends, ain't that obvious?!"

_"Kujikawa-san! Please lend me your power!" Fuuka cried_

"Huh? You knew my name?!" Rise questioned

_"With the information-gathering powers of our Persona's, we should be able to cut Labrys from the ominous presence!"_

"Right, Himiko!" Rise cried as she summoned her Persona

"**Damn it! Damn it all!**" Sho roared through Labrys before breaking out into a crazy laugh "**But this amount of...power...you have a tremendous amount...enough to make the plan come to fruition!**"

"Minazuki!" Mitsuru roared

"**One day...we will meet again and the true vessel will be obtained!**" He laughed "**And this world will come to an end!**"

"Labrys-san!" Daisuke cried out as he caught the collapsing androod

_"The reading has disappeared! I can't trace it!" Fuuka stated_

"That...was the culprit?" Yukiko asked

"What is even going on?" Yumi questioned

"Sister!" Aigis cried as she ran over and took the girl from Daisuke's arms

"Yeah...guess I am a big sister now, huh?" Labrys laughed meekly "Yu-kun was right...I did it...because I had friends"

...

"Is it...over?" Kanji asked

"No...no even close" Mitsuru muttered "He's still out there"

"So this Minazuki person...he's the culprit" Yu confided, before he began to droop down

"Yu-kun!" Chie cried

"We have to get him out of here..." Mitsuru noted "Come on, let's leave"

**JUNES**

"It appears you over exerted yourself, your Persona requires an amazing amount of tension and power, it completely drained you" Mitsuru stated to Yu as the groups sat around a table at Junes "I'd advise against using that technique unless necessary"

"Yeah...I got it..." Yu nodded

"There you are..." Came the approaching groan of Junpei as he and the rest of the Shadow Operative's the food court

"Our apologies, we had no idea that when we exited the TV World, we would exit through another TV" Aigis explained

"I brought the extra coat, like you asked" Yukari stated as she held up two long black overcoats

"Thank you, Yukari-san" Aigis smiled as she took them off her hands and then handed one to Aigis "Here, Sister"

"Huh? A Jacket?" Labrys questioned

"Please, put it on..." Aigis asked

"Okay..." Labrys noted as she slipped on the coat and- "Whoa! This...completely covers up everything..."

"Whoa, with that on, you can't even tell you're..." Chie muttered

"So, these are the Inaba's Persona users?" Ken questioned

"Wait, you guys have a kid?" Kanji questioned

"I'm not a kid!" Ken snapped "I'm 12 years old!"

"Is that a dog?" Yukiko questioned

"Don't tell me, the dog is a Persona user?" Chie asked with a raised eyebrow

"How'd you know?" Yukari asked

"Wha-I was joking!" Chie gasped

"The dog?! Seriously?!" Kanji cried "It...is a cute dog though"

_BARK_

"What're barking at me for?!" Kanji snapped

"I suppose, I should introduce you to everyone else, you're already familiar with Katsuya, so..." Mitsuru lead "This is-"

"No need Mitsuru-senpai!" Junpei smiled "I'll introduce myself, I'm the star-hitter, baseball extraordinaire, Junpei Iori!"

...

"Never heard of you" Kanji shrugged

"Who?" Chie asked

"I don't watch sports" Yukiko stated

"I do and I've never heard of you" Daisuke added

"Contary to popular belief, you're not a world-famous baseball player" Yukari growled before smacking Junpei on the back of the head "Sorry about that, I'm Yukari Takeba..."

"Hey, you look...kinda familiar" Chie mentioned

"Yeah..." Kou nodded

"Aren't you...Feather Pink?" Yu questioned "From the new Featherman series? I've seen Nanako watch it a few times..."

"Uh...yeah" Yukari muttered as she rubbed the back of her head "It's kinda...embarrassing, I'm also a model but I somehow managed to land a role on a kids TV show..."

"Whoa, seriously?!" Kanji shouted "Man, I loved Featherman when I was a kid!"

"I'm Fuuka Yamagishi" The Blue haired girl bowed

"I'm Ken Amada, and this is Koromaru" Ken introduced as the dog barked

"I suppose we should introduce ourselves" Chie noted

"They all know who you are" Mitsuru stated "Katsuya sent us reports upon you, it's how Yamagishi knew Kujikawa-san's name"

"Oh..." Yu simply stated

"Though there's one here we don't recognize..." Mitsuru pointed out

"Oh, I'm Yumi Ozawa..." The girl greeted "And in all honesty...I have no idea what is even happening right now..."

"She just received her Persona today" Yu explained "We haven't explained to her what's going on yet..."

"Probably a good idea to give her some time to rest" Akihiko suggested

"Yeah, we agree" Rise nodded

"Hang on, the report mentioned two others..." Junpei noted

"Where _is _Yosuke-senpai?" Kanji questioned "And Teddie, Adachi and the Matsunaga chick?"

"I dunno, I'll call him up" Yu sighed as he pulled out his phone and checked his contacts

"I'm just glad this is over for now..." Yukiko sighed "Everything hasn't been great in the last few days"

"Indeed, today has been stressful" Mitsuru agreed

"Actually...it's not just that" Chie sighed "We...um...haven't been getting along recently..."

"If you're gonna lie it about it then-" Daisuke began to growl

"Oh piss off with that shit!" Kanji roared

"Woah..." Junpei muttered

"Well, If you're going to bring it up" Daisuke scoffed

"Just...let it go, okay?" Yukiko asked

"Wha-Yukiko-san? What are you talking about?!" Kou asked "Aren't you pissed off with them?!"

"I'm upset that they kept it from me, but if they're happy with one another...then I can't hold them at fault" Yukiko explained

"Are you kidding me?!" Daisuke snapped "After all that shit, all's forgiven, just like that?!"

"If you're gonna kick off about this..." Yu grumbled as he continued to get through to Yosuke

"You-" Kou growled

"Now ain't the time" Kanji spat "Piss off"

...

"Fuck you..." Was Kou's small mutter as he and Daisuke departed

"What...was that about?" Akihiko questioned

"To put it blunt...Jealously" Rise muttered

"Ah, a love triangle, eh?" Junpei chuckled "Ah, the prime of your teen years..."

"Oh shut up" Yukari grumbled as she striked the back of his head "It's probably nothing like that!"

"Actually...that's exactly it" Chie sighed

"O-Oh..." Yukari muttered

"I was right?!" Junpei gasped

"W-Well you guys are High School Students afterall..." Akihiko noted with a scratch of his head

"It's...kinda formed a riff in the team" Chie admitted

"But just 'cause he's jealous doesn't mean he can go around sayin' that shit" Kanji stated

"We..." Rise began to mutter

"Damn it, where is he?" Yu grumbled as Yosuke's phone continued to ring

"It's clearly a personal thing, you don't have to talk about it" Mitsuru stated

"Finally" Yu sighed as the call was answered "Yo-"

_"Hello?" Came the voice from the other line_

"Ah...h-hello?" Yu questioned the voice that was clearly not Yosuke "Is Yosuke there?"

_"So you must be Yu-kun" The voice stated "I'm Yosuke's mother, I'm afraid-"_

_..._

"Hospital?" Yu questioned "Is he...okay, I'll be over there in just a second"

"What's wrong?" Yukiko asked

"It's Yosuke, he's in the hospital" Yu stated as he stood up

"What?!" Kanji asked "What happened?!"

"I dunno, but-" Yu stated as he pushed himself out of his chair

"Go, we'll continue this talk another time..." Mitsuru stated "Let's meet up here again tomorrow..."

"Thank you" Yu nodded as he and group quickly ran off

...

"They remind me a lot of how we used to be..." Mitsuru said

"Yeah..." Akihiko nodded "I saw a lot of Shinji in that Kanji guy..."

"And Narukami-san" Aigis added "His mannerisms...the way he acts, when I fought by him earlier, I almost felt as if I was standing beside Minato-san..."

"He certainly is an interesting one..." Katsuya noted

...

"Interesting..." Sho noted as he surveyed the scene from afar

**INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL**

"Yosuke!" Yu cried out as he ran into the room the Nurse told him

"This is a hospital, keep your voice down!" A Nurse stated

"S-Sorry" Yu apologized before he noted the inhabitants of the room, a woman with long orangish hair stood in the room beside a man who looked uncannily like an older Yosuke with a thin beard and short black hair. Realizing these were most likely Yosuke's parents. He spotted the boy on the hospital bed with several cuts on his arms and face stitched up "Yosuke..."

"Geez, senpai..." Kanji stated as the rest of the group entered the room "You look like shit..."

"I feel like shit..." Yosuke said with a small chuckle "It's a good thing Adachi-san found me when he did..."

"Adachi-san?" Yu questioned

"Yeah, he found me when I fell down those steps at the riverbank" Yosuke stated

_"_That's _the story he's going with?" The group wondered in unison_

"And Ted found Ayane-san at the same time" Yosuke added

"Where _is_ Ted?" Kanji asked

"I figured if that moocher was living off us, he'd at least help drag you to the hospital" Yosuke's father growled

"Oh hush you" Yosuke's mother grumbled with a slap to his arm

"Mr and Mrs. Hanamura, there are some documents I need you to fill out" The Nurse stated

"Yeah, sure" Yosuke's father sighed as he and his wife left the room

"So...what actually happened?" Chie asked

"I took care of Adachi-san's shadow, but ended up pretty beat in the process" Yosuke said "Just before I passed out, I heard Adachi-san accept his shadow and then tell Teddie to take Ayane to the hospital and that he'd take me"

"So that's what happened...so you found this Ayane girl?" Kanji questioned "Where is she?"

...

"She...she didn't have a shadow" Yosuke explained "So the fog practically poisoned her, when I found her, she wasn't breathing...I don't know if they managed to revive her..."

The whole room felt silent at that

"W-Where's Teddie?" Rise asked

"I dunno, I guess he dropped her off and went back to the TV World" Yosuke sighed

"Your dad didn't seem too fond of him" Yu noted

"Yeah...when I took him in, I had to lie to my parents that he was an American Transfer Student and the home he was supposed to stay in was uninhabitable so I asked them if he could stay with us. My mom loves him because he helps around the house but my dad thinks he's just a freeloader..."

"Yikes..." Chie gulped

"Visiting hours are over I'm afraid" A Nurse stated as she entered the room

"We'll come back tomorrow" Yu stated as the group began to exit

...

"Excuse me, ma'am?"

"Hmm?" The Nurse questioned

"Another friend of mine, Ayane Matsunaga was brought in too" Yu stated "How is she?"

"Oh dear...Matsunaga-san" The Nurse said sadly "They managed to stabilize her, but it took too long...she's in a coma"

...

"I-I see..." Yu stated meekly

"I'm very sorry..." The Nurse comforted

"I...I...thank you" Yu nodded before he took off

**JULY 27/ JUNES**

"I had just escaped the lab" Labrys explained "I made it to beach of the island...I saw nowhere else to go, so I just stood there, waiting to be caught...but that's when my vision blurred and I saw a vision. I was in a hospital room, and in the bed was a young girl...she was the girl I was based on. And I could see and hear everything like I was really there"

_"I wonder if the nurse's thought things like the Student Council were too much trouble to bother with when they were in school. I dunno...sounds fun to me. You gotta admire the Student Council President. I mean, they're the one's who get everything done for everyone...but I guess it's because they're like that in the first place that they get to be the President, huh. High School...I wonder what it's like...would it be fun?"_

_"Figures..." Labrys sighed "I don't know anything about schools or whatever else student life is like..."_

"But just as I thought that..." Labrys continued on

_"__**I CAN SHOW YOU, IF YOU SO DESIRE**__"_

_"Huh? Who's there?"_

_"__**THERE'S NO NEED TO BE ALARMED. I ONLY WISH TO GIVE YOU A LOOK AT THE WORLD YOU LONG TO KNOW**__"_

"And then my vision changed to a classroom...and I saw all of you" Labrys stated

"Us?" Yu questioned

"Yeah, I saw all of you" Labrys confirmed "I could hear all ya' talking and stuff..."

_"Is this...a school? A real classroom?" Labrys asked as she lightly stroked one of the wooden desks "But what do the students do when they're aren't any classes? Do they just talk and stuff?"_

_"__**YOU'LL NEVER FIND A PLACE WHERE YOU BELONG. HUMANS CREATED YOU AS A TOOL. THEY WOULD NEVER THINK OF YOU AS ANYTHING ELSE**__"_

_"I..."_

_"__**EVERYONE, TO A MAN, LIVES BY AVERTING THEIR EYES FROM SOMETHING INSIDE THEM. THEY ALL WISH TO LIVE INSIDE A NEVER-ENDING DREAM...FOR WHO HAS THE RIGHT TO SAY THE SHOULDN'T? THERE ARE EVEN HUMANS THAT DON'T UNDERSTAND OTHERS' FEELING, THERE ARE THOSE WHO DO, YET TRAMPLE UPON THEM REGARDLESS. COMPARED TO THEM, YOU ARE MORE HUMAN. WHY NOT THEN, SEEK TO BE **_**HUMAN**_**?"**_

_"Me? Be a human?"_

_"__**PEOPLE SORT THROUGH THEIR MEMORIES IN DREAMS. EACH NIGHT, THEY LET GO OF THEIR PAINFUL MEMORIES AND CONTINUE THEIR LIVES WITH THE MORNING SUN. THAT'S ALL YOU NEED TO DO. FORGET EVERYTHING CONTRARY TO YOUR DESIRES**__"_

_"If...If I forget..."_

_"__**DO NOT FEAR THE ACT OF LETTING GO...THE ONE'S YOU ADMIRE WISHED ONLY FOR YOU TO BE HAPPY...AND I TOO...ALL I WISH, FROM THE DEPTHS OF MY HEART, IS FOR YOU TO FIND JOY**__"_

_"Happiness..."_

_"I wish from the depths of my heart for you to be happy" #24's words echoed in her head_

_"Forget...and be happy..."_

...

_"__**EVERYTHING IS NOW IN READYNESS...**__"_

"After that, I woke up in the school..." Labrys stated "Everything between then is blur..."

"So someone implanted those fake memories within you..." Yukiko stated

"And judging by the detail in them, it's likely someone who knows about you all" Katsuya stated

"Wait, so your saying if it is this Minazuki guy, then he knows us?" Kanji questioned "Like hell! Like'd we know someone like that!"

"We don't even know who Minazuki is" Mitsuru added "For all we know, he could be sitting at the next table..."

"So this Sho person knows about us, and our school...is it possible he's a student at our High School?" Yukiko asked

"Like Mitsuru-san just said, we don't even know what he looks like" Yu added "For all I know, he could be the guy who sits behind me in class"

"We finally know who the murderer is and we can't do anything about it..." Rise groaned

"We have to find out who this Minazuki guy is" Chie said

"We're already on it, we're looking for the name on every possible database, credit cards, school registers, criminal records..." Mitsuru listed "We _will _find him...providing he hasn't fled Inaba"

"If he really is here...I wanna find him" Labrys stated

"Of course, we-" Mitsuru began

No, what I mean is..." Labrys interrupted "I wanna stay here and find him"

"What?" Akihiko questioned

"Sister...!" Aigis gasped

"You...can't be serious, right?" Junpei asked

"Labrys..." Mitsuru stated

"I wanna find him, I don't know why but I feel like...he's here" Labrys explained "I-"

"Absolutely not" Mitsuru declared "If Minazuki is here then you're in danger, you-"

"I know the risks!" Labrys claimed "And that's why I need to find him!"

"Labrys-san..." Yu muttered

"People are dead because of him!" Labrys shouted "If I find him, I can save them! There ain't anything I can do by leavin'!"

"Listen...I know you want to assist, but-" Mitsuru began

"If it is what she desires, then she should be allowed" Aigis stated

"Aigis!" Mitsuru gasped

"I already have Inaba covered" Katsuya added in

"But-" Labrys tried to defend

"It...wouldn't hurt..." Rise added in

"Yeah..." Came another voice

"A-Adachi-san?" Yu questioned

"I thought I'd find you guys here" Adachi stated with a rub of his hair "I...I wanted to ask you guys something..."

"We understand" Yu nodded "But we really-"

"It's okay, you can take the time to explain" Mitsuru told them

"O-Okay" Yu nodded "Adachi-san..."

And then began the long winded explanation...

"Shadows...Persona's..." Adachi repeared before rubbing his temples "That's..."

"We know it's a tad out there, but..." Yu added on

"So Detective Suou..." Adachi said to his fellow detective "You're-"

"Indeed" Katsuya nodded

"Man, this is a bit much" Adachi groaned "And Androids too?"

"How ya doin'?" Labrys waved

"Seriously, if I hadn't experienced myself, I wouldn't've believed it" Adachi sighed

"Now, may we please return to the subject at hand?" Mitsuru asked

"If Labrys desires to stay in Inaba, I will not protest" Aigis stated "Though I am...disappointed that I cannot take this opportunity to get to know her, I will wait until this ordeal is done with"

"Hey, it ain't like that" Labrys claimed

"It is okay" Aigis smiled "There will be plenty of time when this ordeal is over"

"I haven't actually approved anything yet" Mitsuru reminded "We-"

"It would be dangerous..." Akihiko piped in "But at the same time..."

"Let's...let me just think it over..." Mitsuru sighed "We'll be leaving now but we'll be residing in a hotel just outside of town for the next week...when the times come, we'll contact you with our decision"

"Understood" Yu nodded as the Shadow Operatives departed

"Man, can't believe Nagase and Ichijo-senpai no showed" Kanji observed

"I tried to give them a call, but they didn't want any part of it" Yu sighed as he tried to pull himself out of his chair

"Whoa, take it easy..." Adachi stated as the boy began to stumble

"Sorry" Yu apologized "Izanagi-no-Okami really took a lot out of me..."

"And that's another thing, how come you all got upgraded Persona's and I didn't?!" Kanji cried

"Well, we all faced our problems again..." Yu muttered

"I put any animosity aside and accepted that Yu-kun and Chie are together" Yukiko added

"I realized how much I had hurt Yukiko and that I value her friendship more than my own happiness" Chie added too

"I realized that I had been shunning everybody and that the only reason I'm strong is because of all of you" Yu stated "Yosuke didn't tell me why his upgraded too, he just said he accepted it..whatever _it _was..."

"Wait so...I gotta face my problems again if I wanna upgrade my Persona, I have to..." Kanji muttered, remembering his Shadow "Oh hell no! Screw that! If that's what it takes then I'll keep Take-Michizuke!"

**HOSPITAL**

"One of the nurses told me about Ayane..." Yosuke muttered

"Oh..." Yu replied

"A few days ago...she thanked me for everything I did for her, and she told me she loved me" Yosuke revealed "And I rejected her..."

Yu fought the urge to mutter Deja Vu...

"And then she ran off...that was the last time I saw her before she was thrown into the TV" Yosuke sighed

"You're not...blaming yourself, are you?" Yu questioned

...

"How can I not..." Yosuke hummed before pointing to an envelope on the table by his hospital bed "That ain't helping..."

"What is it?" Yu asked

"It's a letter, according to the nurses, Ayane's mother dropped it off" Yosuke revealed

"You going to read it?" Yu asked

"Nope..." Yosuke muttered "How could I, after what I did?"

...

"Just...don't blame yourself" Yu stated to his friend "You should read it"

"Maybe later..." Yosuke groaned "Speaking of relationships, I take it you and Chie got some big plans from the 30th right?"

"No, why?" Yu asked

"_W-Why_?!" Yosuke spluttered "Dude, you two are like the perfect couple and you don't even know your own girlfriends birthday?!"

"It's her birthday?!" Yu questioned "S-She didn't even tell me!"

"Wha-Dude...thought I had relationship troubles" Yosuke groaned

"I have to go..." Yu stated as he ran out of the room

"See ya..." Yosuke chuckled before slowly turning his head to the letter

* * *

"Why didn't you tell me?"

_"I-I didn't wanna make a big deal of it!" Chie explained "We've got a whole murder investigation going on! Just because I'm turning 17 doesn't mean we can take a day off! "_

"But we've got nothing right now!" Yu stated "I could've at least got you something!"

_"It's not important!" Chie repeated "Hell, Yosuke's birthday was last month and he didn't do anything about it!"_

"It was Yosuke's birthday last month?!" Yu echoed

_"Look it's not a big deal!" Chie sighed "Hopefully everything will be solved by your birthday..."_

"My birthday's Febuary 15" Yu stated "It was before I even met you..."

_"Seriously? Just one day after Valentine's day?" Chie asked "W-Wait, no, that's not what I meant...look, I know you mean well but I really don't mind"_

"I-"

_"Yu-kun, just leave it..." Chie sighed "Goodbye..."_

"Bye..." Yu muttered as he hung up

**GAS STATION**

"What are you so happy about?" Sho groaned

"Their power...you felt it didn't you?" The Attendant smiled

"What of it?" Sho shrugged

"You said yourself, their power is sufficient" The Attendant laughed "Which means they're already strong enough...just imagine how much power we'll take from them when the time comes..."

"Yeah, whatever" Sho grumbled with a shrug "It would be happening sooner if it wasn't for that robot bitch"

"I'm sure we can pull that to our advantage..." The Attendant smiled once more

**JULY 28/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Apartment?" Dojima questioned

"Well I can't live on your couch forever, Ryotaro" Motoko groaned as she observed the listings in the newspaper

"So where will you go?" He inquired

"Nowhere out of town" Motoko confirmed "It's obvious Yu doesn't want to leave Inaba, and in all honesty, I don't want to either..."

"You sure about this?" Dojima asked "Is everything with..._him_ sorted out"

"We're getting a divorce...that's final" Motoko stated matter-of-factly "I'm ready to start over here in Inaba..."

"If that's what you want" Dojima sighed "Try not to move too far away though, Nanako doesn't wanna be far from her _big bro_"

"Yes, yes" Motoko giggled "Relax"

"Speaking of..." Dojima muttered "Yu?"

"Yeah?" The boy asked as he peaked his head over the couch

"When are you going to get a haircut?" Dojima asked "You've practically got a mop on your head"

"I like it..." Yu stated as brushed his now shoulder length hair out of his eyes

"Don't listen to him Yu, It looks good" Motoko smiled "I'm sure Chie likes it too"

"Speaking of..." Yu segued "When a girl asks you to not get anything for her birthday..."

"Get her something for her birthday..." Motoko and Dojima said in unison

"'Thought so" Yu nodded

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"What would Chie like?" Yukiko echoed

"I honestly don't know, I wanna do something special for her" Yu sighed "You're the only one I could ask..."

"Hmm..." Yukiko pondered

"While I'm here, I want to apologize" Yu stated "For leading you on like that, I should have just told you that I was in love with Chie right away"

"Yu-kun, I _liked _you, Chie loves you" Yukiko stated with a somewhat sad smile "And I can tell you love her too...it's true that I'm let down, but if you two are happy, I-"

"Oh Yuki-chan" Came the approaching voice of Kasai "Why are you out he-oh, is that? I see..."

"Oh, it's nothing like that" Yukiko stated "I was just helping Yu-kun wi-"

"Oh, you really must come to the inn sometime!" Kasai smiled as she took Yu's hands into her own "The others are just dying to meet Yukiko's boyf-"

"Yu-kun isn't my boyfriend" Yukiko stated "He's Chie's boyfriend, In fact, I'm helping him look for a birthday gift for her"

"Wha-?! But..." Kasai gasped as she turned to Yu "Is this true?"

"Yes Ma'am" Yu nodded

"Aww, but..." Kasai moaned as she turned to Yukiko "I though you li-"

"That's enough Kasai-san" Yukiko said in an effort to end the conversation before turning to Yu "I'm sorry Yu-kun, but I don't really know what Chie would like. More often than not, I would just get her a DVD"

"I see...thank you anyway" Yu sighed before departing

"Yuki-chan...I-" Kasai began

"It's okay..." Yukiko muttered as she watched Yu leave "I...really did like him...but he doesn't want me, so I'm not going to stand in his way...if Chie is happy...then...I..."

"Oh Yuki-chan..." Kasai said as he placed her hand on the crying girls shoulder

...

"Damn it..." Yu sighed as he rubbed his hair "What do I-"

"Narukami..."

"Huh? Daisuke?" Yu questioned as the boy stood before him

"We need to talk" Daisuke stated

**SAMEGAWA RIVER BANK**

"I want you to know, I think you did a really shitty thing" Daisuke stated "Kou's an absolute wreck, he's been in love with her since before you even came to this town"

"If this is about me _stealing _Chie, then-" Yu tried to intercept

"How would you define it?" Daisuke asked "You were well aware Kou loved her when you went for her"

"Have you ever thought about what Chie wanted?" Yu questioned "Cause I got news for you, she picked _me_"

"Even if that is the case, you should have told Kou beforehand that you were interested in her" Daisuke stated "Instead you lied and got with her when Kou was none the wiser..."

"I'm not denying it was a shitty thing to do" Yu said sternly "I won't lie, I have no excuses, I wanted her all to myself...but even if I didn't, she didn't want Kou"

"Not even any regret?" Daisuke glared

"None..." Yu stated

"You're a real piece of work..." Daisuke grumbled

"What do you want me to say?" Yu asked "Break up with her, give her to Kou, what will that change?"

"You completely destoryed my best friend emotionally..." Daisuke stated "Quite frankly, seeing you two around, all lovey-dovey, kinda makes me sick..."

"Oh, nice" Yu spat

"You're practically rubbing it in Kou's face!" Daisuke snapped "The fact that you genuinely don't see anything wrong with what you did is inexcusable, man!"

"Why isn't Kou here telling me this?" Yu asked

"Kou can't stand the sight of you and quite frankly, I'm having a hard time too..." Daisuke gurgled

"So what, what did you come here to do? Chew me out, you already have, so what now?" Yu shrugged "You gonna attack me like Kou did?"

Daisuke merely stared at boy before steeping forward

...

"You're not worth it" Daisuke stated before stepping back

"Tell Kou that if he really loved Chie, he should have done something about it" Yu said sternly "But it wouldn't of made a difference, he would of just gotten rejected"

"You shut up" Daisuke growled

"I didn't _steal _her, there was nothing to steal!" Yu shouted "The fact of the matter is, she didn't love him. Yeah, I ignored Kou's ask for help, but the end result would have been the same, Kou's just bitter..."

"You know...when we came here, I really didn't intend to hit you" Daisuke stated as he cracked his knuckles "But quite frankly, there's nothing more I'd like than to just punch you in your-"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you..."

"Kanji?" Yu questioned as the blond boy approached the pair

"You lay your hands on Senpai and you gotta deal with me" Kanji stated as he stood in front of Yu

"Oh it must be nice to have a bunch of friend who always take your side" Daisuke spat "Lemme guess, you don't see anything wrong with what Narukami did either, do you?"

"It ain't none of my buisness...or yours" Kanji growled "So if you got a problem here...then _we _got a problem here"

...

"Fuck you both" Daisuke spat before storming off

"You okay Senpai?" Kanji asked

"I'm fine..." Yu nodded "Thanks K...Kanji...how quickly can you teach me to knit?"

"H-Huh?!" Kanji stuttered

**JULY 29/ JUNES/ CLOTHING STORE**

"Finally out of the hospital and you drag me all the way to work" Yosuke sighed

"Sorry, but you do get an employee's discount right?" Yu asked

"Well yeah..." Yosuke shrugged

"Great" Yu smiled as he picked a shirt off the rack "How much would this be with the discount?"

"Freaking expensive, that's what!" Yosuke gasped as he examined the price tag "I didn't even know we had stuff this expensive!"

"I'm gonna miss being able to afford food...but I wanna be well dressed for this" Yu stated

"Well it is your girlfriends birthday..." Yosuke sighed "Come on, I brought the discount card"

**KOU ICHIJO'S HOME**

_"I'm sorry, I tried to talk to him but-"_

"It's fine...Kou sighed "I appreciate it..."

_"Kou..."_

"I'll be fine Daisuke" He nodded as he hung up the phone

Which he immediately threw into the wall

"Damn it...damn it!" Kou roared as he kicked over the table in front of him "Why...why did that bastard take her from me?!...Why couldn't I have just...why..._no chance with her_? That bastard! Me...I could've won her over...we...we could have been something! I...just wanted a chance with damn it!"

Kou shrank down and curled himself into a ball onto the floor, tears stinging his eyes

"Why...why couldn't I have just told her how I felt earlier?" He muttered "Why?...Me and Chie...could have been together..."

...

"I-"

_**"IF YOU SO DESIRE...I CAN SHOW YOU THAT POSSIBILITY"**_

"Wha?!" Kou gasped as he jumped up "W-Who's there?"

_**"DO NOT BE ALARMED...ALL I WISH IS FOR YOUR DESIRE TO BE GRANTED..."**_

"W-What's going on?" Kou asked

_**"HUMANS LIKE TO BELIEVE THAT LOVE IS AN ALL POWERFUL, WARM AND UTTERLY BEAUTIFUL EMOTION, IN TRUTH, THING ARE NOTHING LIKE THAT. LIKE A WEAPON, IT CAN HELP US PROTECT THE ONES WE CARE FOR AND EVEN HELP US THROUGH HARDSHIP BUT AT THE SAME TIME IT CAN HURT OTHERS. THERE'S SO MUCH THEY LOSE SIGHT OF WHEN IT GETS TOO STRONG. YET NO MATTER HOW STRONG IT IS...THERE ARE THINGS THAT IT CAN'T OVERCOME...WHY NOT THEN, SEEK A WORLD **_**WITHOUT **_**LOVE?"**_

"W-What are you saying?!" Kou shouted "Where are you?! How

_**"THAT GIRL WOULD NEVER LOVE YOU, HER HEART WILL ALWAYS BELONG TO ANOTHER...THAT LOVE CREATES HATE WITHIN YOU...LOVE GIVES BIRTH TO HATE...HATE GIVES BIRTH TO WAR...PEOPLE KNOW THIS, YET FAIL TO UNDERSTAND IT. A WORLD WITHOUT LOVE WOULD BE ONE WITHOUT HATE..."**_

"This is all...what is all this?!" Kou roared as he clutched his head

_**"WHY NOT THEN SEEK, TO MAKE A WORLD WITHOUT LOVE?...A WORLD I CAN MAKE..."**_

"N-No! Go away!" Kou snapped

_**"YOUR LOVE BEING RETURNED IS SOMETHING THAT CANNOT HAPPEN...SO INSTEAD, MAKE IT SO THERE WAS NO LOVE TO BEGIN WITH..."**_

"I...I..." Kou muttered, before beginning to feel feint

_**"NOW...**_**" **The voice rang out as Kou collapsed _**"ALL IS IN READYNESS"**_

**JULY 30/ EVENING**

_"Come to my house, seven o'clock" Yu commanded_

_"Wha-?!" Chie gasped "H-Hey! I thought we agreed that there wouldn't be any-"_

_"No excuses" Yu stated as he ran off_

_"H-Hey! Wait!" Chie shouted_

And now there she was, walking down the street to the Dojima household. Her trademark bike shorts were swapped for a longer pair that went just below her knees, a pair of white shoes replaced her sneakers, she wore a yellow dress and in the place of her trademark green jacket was a thinner blue one.

As she turned around the corner, she spotted her boyfriend and her jaw practically dropped as she observed him. It was only now she realized that his hair was now a long flowing mane that reached down to his shoulders. He was dressed in brown dress shows, grey suit pants and a dress shirt with the top few buttons left open with a grey jacket slung over his shoulder

"There you are" He smiled

"W-Whoa" She muttered before blushing

"Come on in..." Yu smiled as he held open the door to the Dojima household

"T-Thanks" She nodded as she hopped in and took off her shoes

"Uncle and Mom took Nanako out, for the next few hours, it's just us" Yu smiled

"O-Oh" She nodded with a blush

"Happy Birthday Chie" Yu smiled before pointing to the table

Where a candlelit steak dinner sat

"W-What...!" Chie gasped "D-Did you make this?"

"Of course...as well as this" Yu smiled as he pulled something from behind him

"A scarf?" She asked as Yu handed her a red scarf, with the words _Like a Dragon_ etched in with green stitching

"I asked Kanji to teach me how to knit" Yu chuckled "Though I had to get him to sew the lettering in...I-I know it's summer and you don't really need a scarf, but I-"

"No, it's fine...I love it" Chie smiled

"That's not all..." Yu smiled back as he pulled out something else "After we're done eating, I thought we could watch a movie"

"N-No way!" Chie gasped as she snatched the DVD case "I-I-Is this Trial of the Dragon 2?! T-This isn't even out on DVD yet! How did you-"

"Yep" Yu smiled "I got Teddie to sneak me a copy from the Junes stockroom...d-don't tell Yosuke"

...

"Y-You really went all out for me, huh?" Chie blushed

"Of course, just know that when you tell me not to do something for you, not only will I do it, I'll do it far better than you ever imagined..." Yu smiled

...

"I can't believe you sometimes" Chie giggled

"Come on" Yu chuckled as he took her by the hand "Come on...steak's getting cold"

**A FEW HOURS LATER**

"S-Sorry..." Chie apolgized

"It's my own fault" Yu groaned "I should've known not to get too close when you get excited watching your movies..."

"I didn't mean to punch you in the gut" She stated "I just throught the fight was so awesome that I started flailing my arms about and-"

"I'm fine" Yu smiled "Really..."

...

"So...apart from that, tonight was amazing" Chie smiled sweetly

"I'll do it again next year, but even better" Yu smiled "And I'll keep on doing it every year..."

"Even when we're old and in a home?" Chie chuckled

"Long after we get married" Yu smiled

"W-Whoa! M-M-M-Married?!" Chie gasped

"I'm serious...I wanna marry you one day Chie" Yu said

"G-Geez!" Chie blushed "W-We've only been together for just under two months!"

"I know...but you're the one who said we're forever, right?" Yu nodded

"Well yeah..." Chie muttered

"I'm not proposing if that's what you're thinking" Yu chuckled "All I'm saying is, I wanna be with you...forever..."

...

"I want nothing more" Chie smiled as she kissed him

"They'll be back soon..." Yu noted

"Then take a deep breath, cause I'm not stopping until they come through that door..." Chie giggled before kissing him again

**GAS STATION**

"Ugh...where...where am I?" Kou groaned as he pulled himself up off the floor

"Welcome..." Came a voice he didn't recognize

"W-Who's there?" Kou asked "It's so dark in here...I can't see"

"Allow me to introduce myself..." The voice stated as it walked towards him and came into view "I am Minazuki...Sho Minazuki..."

* * *

Sorry about the long wait for this one folks, that pesky thing called life got in the way.

So Yu's hair has been noted to have changed yet again. This time around for a comparison; let's say Yu has the hairstyle of Ray Za Burrel from Gundam Seed Destiny, except Silver instead of Blond. Bit feminine but I feel it fits

ALSO

IT'S BEEN A WHOLE MONTH SINCE THE LAST REVIEW

GIVE ME REVIEWS PLS, I ENJOY THEM


	14. I'll Kill Him

**I'LL KILL HIM**

"M-Minazuki?" Kou questioned as he pulled himself "H-Hang on...you're..."

_"Indeed...I am Sho Minazuki"_

_"So you _are _the one behind it all!"_

"You're the one throwing people into the TV!" Kou shouted

"Not exactly accurate, but nevertheless..." Minazuki led on "I brought you here so we could talk"

"W-What the hell do you want with me you bastard!" Kou roared, backing away slightly as he saw two swords sheathed on Minazuki's hips

"I want you...to help me..." Was his simple statement

"Help you?!" Kou spluttered "Like hell you bastard!"

"Why not?...Don't you want Yu Narukami dead?" Minazuki asked

"W-What? N-No!" Kou shouted "I-I-I don't want dead! I-"

"You despise him with every inch of your being..." Minazuki reminded "But that world...the one you want where he never took her...it can happen...we can make it happen..."

"Y-You mean that world without love crap?!" Kou snapped "Like hell, like you-Wait, how did you know about that...and what do you mean _we_?"

"He means...I" Came another voice that walked towards Kou

"W-Who are you?" Kou asked

"I know you Kou Ichijo..." The voice of the Gas Station Attendant rang "And I know what you will do to secure what you want...you cannot have Chie Satonaka...so why should Yu Narukami?"

"It's..." Kou muttered "It's..."

"Do you accept the fact that you lost her?" The Attendant asked "Do you accept the fact that you will never have her...?"

...

"I..."

"Your hesitation has already provided us with the answer" The Attendant stated "We can make that world where your pain doesn't exist...we can stop the pain..."

"Damn it, I'm not going to kill him!" Kou roared

"If that is what you think..." The Attendant stated as he walked towards Kou "Then allow me to give you a glimpse"

"Wha-!" Kou gasped as his head began to pound "Argh! W-What did you do to me?!"

"All we desire Kou Ichijo...is to change the world..." The Attendant stated as Kou fell to his knee's "And you can help us..."

"You _will _join us Kou Ichijo..." Minazuki stated "You _will _kill Yu Narukami..."

"I have given you a glimpse of the world you desire..." The Attendant stated as Kou fell to his knee's, various visions running through the boys head "You can feel it can't you...?"

"I..." Kou muttered as he saw vision after vision, each one of a peaceful world... "I...won't be tricked by the two of you"

"There are not two of us..." The Attendant stated as he pointed his gaze towards the shadows "There are _three _of us"

Kou proceeded to follow his gaze and eyed a figure covered by the darkness

"Who...who is that?" Kou asked

"That is the man you truly seek...the one who murdered Mayumi Yamano...and Saki Konishi, Ai Ebihara...he did it" The Attendant stated

"W-What?!" Kou gasped as he gazed at shadowy figure "W-Who are you?!"

"That is not important...look at those visions I gave you...do you honestly not believe that is a better world?" The Attendant asked "That world...would not only benefit you...it would benefit mankind..."

"I..." Kou muttered once

"Give it a few days of thought..." The Attendant stated as he stood up "But of course...if you tell anyone about us...we will have to kill you..."

And with that, in a reverse of the events that just occurred, Kou fell outcold and awoke within his home

**JULY 31/ JUNES**

"So what do we do now?" Yu asked "Minazuki is out there somewhere and we can't do anything"

"It all really depends on whether or not Mitsuru-san allows Labrys to stay here..." Yukiko sighed "At least it's peaceful for now...We really went through a lot…"

"Like scoring with guys!" Teddie piped in

"Oh, come on!" Yukiko groaned "Will you ever let it go?"

"What…? Scoring with guys!?" Kanju spluttered

"Y-You don't need to know the details." Yukiko stuttered "I'm sure you'd like us to forget the sauna incident too… right, Kanji-kun?"

"Urgh…W-Well…" Kanji gulped

"That's not fair…" Rise whined "I wanted to see everyone else's too!"

"That's right. We three are the only ones who saw everyone's secret." Chie noted before turning to Yu "Hey, so what was Yosuke's like? C'mon, it's about time you told us."

"Wha-Hey!" Yosuke shouted

"Pretty much like the rest" Yu shrugged

"Y-Yeah! Okay! Let's leave it at that" Yosuke stated in exasperation before he too turned to the silver haired leader "Speaking of which, nothing really happened in your case, huh?"

"No...and I still don't get it" Yu sighed

"Really…Wait, really?" Rise questioned "Is there something special about Senpai after all?"

"Sensei is da man!" Teddie cheered

...

"Hey, why don't we have a celebration?" Rise suggested "After that Grand Prix business, I'd say we earned a break..."

"Oooh, a party! That sounds great! Let's go all out!" Chie said happily

"Ooh, ooh! I wanna go to Yuki-chan's house!" Teddie piped in "Gorgeous dinner, hot springs, table tennis, yukata! Geisha, Fujiyama, full wootness!"

"You're right, Yukiko-senpai's family runs a hot springs inn…" Kanji noted before a blush slowly crept onto his cheeks "A-A hot spring that…Yukiko-senpai bathes in too…?"

"Hey, keep it to yourself…" Yosuke groaned "You're sounding like a creep."

"I-It sounds fun, but I don't think it'll be possible" Yukiko said sadly

"Yeah, it's summer vacation. All the rooms must be occupied..." Chie noted

"We can't do a sleepover…?" Teddie pouted

"Maybe next time. I promise." Yukiko smiled

"Hey, why don't we hit your place instead?" Yosuke suggested "Oh, but will your uncle get suspicious? Like, _why are you all celebrating_?"

"I'm sure my Mom wouldn't mind" Yu shrugged "Besides, I think Uncle is working late tonight"

"Then it's settled." Yosuke nodded "Nanako-chan can join in, too."

"Oh yeah, if your uncle's a detective, he might not come home tonight…" Chie observed "Nanako-chan might be getting hungry."

"Hey, then why don't we make dinner together?" Yukiko suggested

"Wow…are you good at cooking, Senpai?" Rise asked

"W-Well…sort of?" Chie shrugged

"What are you saying?!" Yosuke shrieked "Did you already forget the tragedy of the school campout!?"

"W-We already told you that was an accident!" Chie snapped

"She's right! We just got a couple of the ingredients wrong!" Yukiko defended

"Guys, please don't do this, I'm begging you…I don't need another trauma to deal with…" Yosuke begged

"Hey, I'm a good cook too!" Rise added "I'll make something for you, Senpai."

"Tadaaaah! Teddie has a great idea!" He shouted as he popped up "Let's have a cooking battle! The winner will be crowned Iron Cook Inaba!"

"A cooking battle? Now I'm even more worried…" Yosuke groaned

"S-Sure, that sounds like fun." Chie muttered

"Aww, but I'll win hands-down. You sure you want to make it that easy?" Rise giggled

"Dude, listen to me, for the sake of our stomachs, you have to cook something too..." Yosuke begged Yu "Help us Yu Narukami! You're our only hope"

"Well...I guess" Yu shrugged

"Then you can represent the guys' team." Chie smiled, aware of Yu's cooking skills "Nanako-chan will be our judge!"

"I can be a taster too!" Kanji stated

"Teddie can be a tester too!" He added "At the end, you're supposed to say, _That was delicious! _right?"

"Woo! I'm getting all fired up!" Chie cheered "Alright! Let us advance forth into the grocery section downstairs! Chaaaarge!"

* * *

_"Dojima residence...oh hi!" Nanako greeted "Yeah, he said he's gonna be late today, but Auntie Motoko is here...huh…? Dinner? You're all going to cook?"_

"Ask Nanako-chan what she wants for dinner!" Chie asked Yu

_"What do I want…? Um…Anything's fine."_

"She's just being modest! Ask her again." Yukiko stated

_"Well, umm…an omelette. I wanna eat omelette with fried rice...okay, I'll be waiting!"_

"Fried rice omelette…an excellent choice, Nanako-chan. With a dish that simple, I doubt we'll get a second helping of Mystery Food X." Yosuke stated before noticing the nervous expressions on Chie and Yukiko's faced "Huh? What's wrong?"

"N-Nothing." Chie defended "Alright, let's go get our ingredients."

"Uh…If they're all making the same thing, why are they splitting up to different parts of the market…?" Yosuke questioned as the girls took off in different directions before he turned to Yu"Looks like you'll need all the help I can give you…hey, what kind of omelette are you making? I'll go get the ingredients for ya."

"Well..." Yu began to list and soon the girls returned with their itmes

"Foie Gras?!" Yosuke gasped as Rise put it in the card

"Quite an eye you got there, Senpai." Rise giggled "It's a must-have for my special omelette Don't worry, I'll let you have a taste. Ooh, or maybe I could spoon feed you. I heard last time you choked down something so awful that words couldn't describe it…"

"It was horrible…" Yosuke and Yu muttered in unison

"You poor dears…who would do such a horrible thing…?" Rise asked

"R-R-Rise-san? This is gonna be the only chance you get to gloat, is that clear?" Chie glared

"I'll crush you with one strike." Yukiko muttered darkly

"Whoa…you guys look like you're ready to enter the Ultimate Frying Championship." Kanji stated as he returned with his items

"Kanji-kun! That's alcohol!" Yukiko gasped

"Huh…? Oh, uh…hahaha…" Kanji chuckled "H-How did that get there, I'll just...put it back"

"By the way, where's Teddie?" Chie asked

...

"Excuse me Ma'am, can I eat this?" Teddie asked

"Of course you can, dear. Eat as much as you like!" The Sample Tray Ladie smiled

"You're such a nice lady. Is this one cooked already?"

"This one's ready too." She giggled "Oh my, are you hungry for more? Here… I'll open this one too."

"You're so beautiful…" Teddie stated

"Oh my, no! No, I mustn't! I've got a husband and a son!"

"But I really want this meat… And I want you to cook it, Miss."

"Ohhh, I couldn't possibly. The manager would get so upset."

...

"I'm gonna knock the stuffing out of that bear..." Yosuke growled

"H-Hey...should we call up Kou-kun and Daisuke-kun?" Rise asked "I mean..."

"No" Was Yu's stern statement

"O-Okay" Rise gulped

"Maybe it's best we don't talk to them for a while..." Yosuke muttered "Give 'em some time to cool off..."

"If they ever..." Kanji groaned

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Wow! It's really Rise-chan!" Nanako piped as she and Teddie sat at the table, observing the others in the kitchen"

"I should go back over there soon…" Teddie said

"Are you going somewhere?" Nanako asked

"Yep…" Teddie nodded "They kept their promise so I need to go back over there and check if everything's okay..."

"A promise, huh…" Nanako muttered "What if you made a promise with me? Could you stay then?"

"Huh? A promise...with Nana-chan?" Teddie questioned

"Don't worry about it Teddie" Yu smiled as he walked over

"B-But…a promise is a promise…It's not good to break them…" Teddie stated "I need to go back there and check-"

"You promised Nanako…" Yu stated

"S-Sensei…my promise with Nana-chan…I made a promise to play with her…can I really stay here…?" Teddie asked "It wasn't just my promise. Nana-chan made it with me…I'm really… really happy…thank you…! Hey, Yosuke… I have a new promise to keep…s-so, I wanna stay here a little longer! Is that okay with you, Sir!?"

"Huh? What're you talking about? You're not going anywhere." Yosuke groaned "You can't just quit your job like that. In any case, if you left-"

"It's reeeeeaaaaadyyyy! Incoming food! Out of the way, Senpai!" Rise called

"Whoa! Ow!" Yosuke yelped as he was jabbed out of the way

**A FEW MINUTES LATER AT THE DINNER TABLE**

"Bon appetit!" Rise smiled as the food was layed out on the table

"W-Well, wait a sec." Yosuke interrupted "Asking Nanako-chan to jump in and try these for us is kinda…unethical."

"D-Don't look at us like that!" Chie snapped

"Ohhh…so it's our job to taste it first, to make sure we can keep it down." Kanji noted

"Hey! That's mean!" Rise pouted "Then try mine first, Yosuke-senpai. It's guaranteed delicious!"

"You don't mind me going first? Actually, I've been looking forward to yours. I mean, Risette cooked it herself. Can you imagine how many guys would kill me if they found out?" Yosuke laughed before stabbing his fork into Rise omlette "Well then, chow time!"

...

"Urgh…I-I…can't give this to Nanako-chan…"

"Ooh! It's so delicious that you won't let anyone else have a bite!?" Rise cheered

"I-I guess I should try it too..." Yu muttered as he put a piece in his mouth

"How is it Senpai?" Rise asked

...

"You ever seen those guys at the circus eat the flaming torches?" Yu squeaked as he fled to find some water

"H-Huh?!" Rise gasped

"It's like lava..." Yosuke muttered before he ran over and fought with Yu to get the last bottle of water in the fridge

"Here, try mine next." Yukiko suggested

"I'll take this one." Kanji nodded as he cut the omelette in half

"K-Kanji…that's a lot…" Yosuke observed as Kanji stuck half the omelette in his mouth

...

"H-Hey, say something." Yukiko said as Kanji swallowed it

"Well…uh…how do I put this…?" Kanji pondered "It tastes really, um…boneless…?"

"What!? That's not a word you use to describe taste!" Yukiko shrieked "Does it taste good or not!? Tell me!"

"Here Senpai, you try" Kanji said as handed Yu a piece

...

"Well...it's an improvement over Mystery Food X" Yu stated as he swallowed "But there was absolutely no flavor whatsoever..."

"Not good, that's for sure. It tastes like…like I'm eating plain oatmeal…" Kanji muttered "It's pretty impressive that you put so many ingredients into a dish and it came out tasting like nothing."

"Y-Your palate just isn't refined enough!" Yukiko snapped

"I think it tastes good." Nanako smiled as he ate the rest

"Nanako-chan…!" Yukiko gasped in happiness

"O-Okay…try mine next." Chie stated as she pushed hers to the center of the table "Urgh…I dunno about this…but I think it'll taste good! This time for sure!"

"I'll give it a whirl." Teddie stated as he ingested a piece

"H-How is it…?" Chie asked

"Wow, this tastes awful!" Teddie said joyfully "You have to try this, Yosuke."

"Dude, not after you say that…" Yosuke groaned before turning to Yu "You do it, she's your girlfriend after all..."

...

"Y-Yeah" Chie nodded as Yu nervously stabbed his fork into it "It won't be that bad...right?"

...

"It's..." Yu muttered as he stuck it in his mouth "An improvement over the curry..."

"Yeah, thanks for the consolation…I feel soooo much better…" Chie groaned

"I think this tastes good too." Nanako smled as she ate a piece

"Nanako-chan…!" Chie gasped

"Oh yeah, they're right…" Yukiko said as she swallowed a piece "They're totally right! It tastes awful! Ahahahaha!"

"Then try Rise-chan's I bet you anything mine tastes better than hers!" Chie shouted as Yukiko did just that

"U-Urhg…" Yukiko groaned as she hunched over

"S-Senpai!?" Rise gasped

"Sure enough…one strike." Kanji observed

"Well, Yukiko and Chie's didn't taste good either…but at least theirs didn't cause any casualties..." Yosuke stated

"I-It's a taste too subtle for kids! It's a mature flavor!" Rise cried "You guys are just kids…I, I…Waaaaaaah!…"

"What're you crying for?!" Kanji snapped

"It's spicy, but it's still good." Nanako stated as she ate a small bit

"Nanako-chan…!" Rise popped up happily "I knew it! Nanako-chan's the most mature person in this room!"

"C-Crocodile tears!?" Chie spluttered

"Oh yeah, didn't you make one too Senpai?" Kanji asked

"You did!? Ooh…" Nanako stated as she ate a piece of Yu's omelette "This is really good! I've never had an omelette with fried rice this good! It's amazing!"

"Are you full, Nanako-chan?" Chie asked as the girl practically wolfed it down

"We're still starving…" Yosuke groaned

"If you're so hungry, then help yourself to an awful-tasting omelette! Hmph!" Chie grunted

"U-Uh, I have a suggestion…" Yosuke said with a raised hand "You guys know about the festival they're holding in the shopping district, right? Why don't we all go?"

"Oh, that sounds good!" Rise said happily

"Whoa! Does that mean the girls will be wearing yukata!?" Teddie gasped

"A festival…" Nanako mumbled

"We'll bring Nanako-chan along too." Yosuke stated

"I can come?" Nanako asked

"We wouldn't dream of going without you" Yu smiled

"Really!? Yay!" She cheered

"That settles it, then." Kanji nodded "Festival food always tastes great for some reason, even if it ain't anything fancy...whew…we'll finally be able to get some edible food for once."

"Alright, August 20! Save the date!" Yosuke stated

**AUGUST 1/ HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"The other day...I went to visit Dad's grave." Kanji stated "It's the first time I went on my own...well, I had a lot to tell him."

"_Tell him_?" Yu questioned

"'Bout you, about everyone...and...that I found my own answer to what he said." Kanji sighed

"Dad told me somethin' right before he died; _If you're a man, you have to become strong_." Kanji stated "I felt like he was telling me I wasn't a real man. Pissed me off. So, I changed my looks and pushed myself away from people...fighting gangs, thinking I was protecting Mom...tryin' to catch this killer...I thought all'a that was how I was becoming strong. That I was really making up for all the trouble I caused...I was drunk off my _power_. But...that wasn't it. That ain't what Dad meant, I still don't really get what bein' _strong_ means, but I'm gonna start by not lying to myself. No more being scared of everyone, hiding my hobbies, staying away from people. Anytime, anyplace, I'm gonna bust right through as my own self! That's the way to deal with that _other me_ in the TV world. As long as there's someone like that snot-nosed kid to accept me, I ain't afraid of nothing!"

"I'm happy for you" Yu smiled

"Sir! It's all thanks to you!" Kanji smiled back "Oh yeah. We're gonna put those dolls of mine up for sale at the shop. They were a big hit with that kid and his mom...they called me just to say _thank you_... Heheh, I got a kick outta that. Oh, I gotta go buy supplies...I need to jet."

"See ya" Yu waved him off

**AUGUST 2/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Um...I lost the paper I was supposed to return to school..." Nanako muttered, looking as if she was on the verge of tears "What should I do? The teacher will yell at me."

"I'll help you look" Yu nodded

"Thanks, big bro!" Nanako smiled

"I'll look in this pile" Yu stated as he shifted through the papers Dojima kept on the table

"I'll look over here" Nanako stated as she left to observe elsewhere

Sifting through the papers, he stumbled upon one with _Parent Survey Regarding Scheduling of Parent-Teacher Interviews_ hidden among them...noticing the word "_anytime_ had been written in the 'Day Requested' box. Realizing this was the paper Nanako was looking for, he pulled it out of the pile, only for something hidden in the papers to fall out too

A photo...

"I found it..." Yu called to Nanako as he also picked up the photo

"You did?" Nanako asked happily as she ran over to him

"And this too..." Yu stated as he handed her the photo

"It says _Anytime... I'll try_, on it. So... he can come anytime? I see..." Nanako said with a happy giggle "And this is a photo? Oh, this is...Mom...this little baby in the middle...that's me...Dad's smiling...why did Dad stop smiling...?"

...

"I think your dad's lonely" Yu told her

"Dad's...lonely?" Nanako questioned "After Mom died, I was lonely, but...I'm not the only one who's sad that Mom's not here any more...Dad...he was lonely, too...I'm sorry, Dad..."

"Your dad..." Yu muttered

...

_"Mom, Dad?!" Yu cried out as he ran down the stairs "What's happening?!"_

_"You have to understand, it was just a fling!" Shinya Narukami cried as he dodged the glass thrown at him_

_"GET OUT! GET OUT YOU PIECE OF SHIT" Motoko screamed_

_"Motoko! Please just calm down!"_

_"YOU FUCKING CHEATED ON ME YOU BASTARD! YOU LEFT ME AND YOUR SON IN THE DARK WHILE YOU WENT OFF TO HAVE SEX WITH SOME BITCH!"_

_"It wasn't like that! please just-"_

_"GET OUT! GET OUT!"_

...

"Big bro?" Nanako asked he appeared to lost in thought

"Huh? Oh..." Yu muttered "Sorry, I was just...thinking about something..."

"Thank you, Big Bro" Nanako smiled before looking at the photograph "Will Dad ever smile like that again?"

**AUGUST 3/ KOU ICHIJO'S HOME**

_"Dude...where are you? Seriously, your families getting worried man...Just call me back, okay?"_

_BEEP_

Ignoring yet another message from Daisuke, Kou sat in the corner of his house

_"You will join us...you will kill Yu Narukami..."_

_"If you tell anyone about us...we will have to kill you..."_

"Kill..." Kou muttered "Can I..."

_"__**A WORLD WITHOUT LOVE IS ONE WITHOUT HATE**__"_

"Could I...could this world really..."

**JUNES **

"We've come to an agreement..." Mitsuru sighed as she and Labrys stood before the Investigation Team "Labrys will stay..."

"Really?" Rise questioned

"But...should we hear nothing of Minazuki within a month, we will return for her" Mitsuru stated "Until then...farewell"

"Thanks 'gain Mitsuru-san" Labrys bowed

"Just remember...we _will _find Minazuki" Mitsuru stated as she began to exit "We've all got things to deal with back home, we wish you the best of luck"

"Well Labrys, guess you're one of us now..." Yosuke noted

"Yeah, looks like it" Labrys smiled "I'll make sure to weat this coat all the time so no one knows I'm a...you know..."

"Yeah" Kanji nodded "But there's just one thing...where's she gonna live?"

"Hey, yeah...we didn't think of that" Chie groaned

"She can't stay with me, I've already got Teddie" Yosuke stated

"I...hang on..." Yu said "I've got an idea

...

_KNOCK KNOCK_

"Hello?" Adachi asked as he opened the door

**AUGUST 4/DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Your Greek cousin? Really?" Dojima asked

_"Yeah..." Adachi said_

"How long she's staying with you?"

_"At least a month..."_

"Well...good luck with that, I have to go" Dojima sighed as he hung up

**HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"I read the letter Ayane's mother left me..." Yosuke said

"You did?"

"Yeah..." Yosuke sighed as he pulled it out of his pocket "Ayane wrote it herself...before she was kidnapped"

"So...what was it about?" Yu asked

"Read it" Yosuke said as he handed it to him

_Yosuke-senpai, I'm sorry that I can't say this to your face, instead, all I ask is for you to read this and then you can do whatever you want, feel free to ignore me or talk to me whenever._

_For me, it's just been an hour since you turned me down at the riverbank. Since I told you that I loved you and you rejected me_

_But that's okay_

_I'm upset you don't return my feelings, but I don't blame you for anything. I was just happy that I was able to tell you, you're the one who gave me the confidence to even say these things. I can't blame you for not loving me_

_Now, I don't even feel angry. In all honesty, I'm happy that I was even able to say it. Thank you Yosuke-senpai. And don't feel guilty. _

_Love whoever you want to love..._

_Ayane_

"Yosuke..." Yu muttered as he put the letter down

"So that's that then...apparently, I'm not supposed to feel guilty" Yosuke hummed "Then why do I..."

"It wasn't your fault she was thrown in the TV..." Yu said to him "That and you turning her down were two completely different things..."

"Still feel like shit" Yosuke piped "Then again, I'm talking to the master of turning girls down here...

...

Shit, sorry...I-"

"It's okay...you're not wrong" Yu admitted with a guilty chuckle

"Not everyone can be as lucky as you when it comes to relationships..." Yosuke sighed before admiring the view "So what do I do man..."

After a few second of silence, Yosuke spotted the letter beginning to drift away in the wind, he turned to Yu...

"All you can do is move on..." Was the silver haired boys statement

"Heh..." Yosuke smirked "Thanks..."

**AUGUST 5/ OKINA CITY**

"Do you come here often?" Yu asked

"Yeah. You know there's not much of a selection where we live, right? Since I've got a mule with me today, I think it's time for a shopping spree!" Rise giggled

"Is Inaba not good enough?" Yu asked

"No way! All they have is Junes! _Every day's great_, but it's not THAT great!" Rise said "Though the sweats they have over there aren't bad..."

"What are you looking for anyway?" Yu questioned

"A one-piece, of course! Make sure you take notice when I wear it, okay?" Rise said with a naughty smile

"I-I'm in a relationship Rise" Yu blushed

"Oh, I'm only kidding" Rise giggled "Oh, come to think of it, where does Kanji buy his clothes You can't find pointy stuff like those at Junes, can you? Does he buy them online?...Maybe he makes them?"

"E-Excuse me" A young man declared as he walked up to them "Are you Risette? I...I-I-I-I..."

"No...I'm not..." Rise said sternly as she took Yu by the arm and walked off "Let's go Senpai..."

* * *

"They just never learn!" Rise groaned "But I told them! _No, I'm not, You're mistaken, I'm not Risette!_...and it's true...I'm no longer Risette...I'm just an ordinary girl"

"And are you okay with that?" Yu asked

"It is" Rise smiled "I never thought I'd be out in public like this. I love Inaba, Senpai...you see the same faces every day, rumors spread fast, and there are times when it gets on my last nerve...and sometimes I feel I might be better off if I was in a big city full of strangers...but even then, I love that town. You're there, Grandma's there...and above all, there's something I can do there. I can fight now, which means I'll be on the front lines with you now...let's keep at it, Senpai!"

"Of course" Yu smiled with a nod

"I didn't see any one-pieces that clicked with me, so I guess we should go home." Rise sighed "Let's go, Senpai."

**AUGUST 6/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"The newspaper article...?" Dojima echoed "Ohh...yeah, I found it. Were you worried about it?...It's about Chisato...my wife. When she was killed by a hit-and-run..."

"N-Nanako mentioned that..." Yu muttered

"I told you before, right? About the case where we never had a suspect?" Dojima sighed "Get it now...? There's nothing more I can say about it in this house. Let's stop there..."

"Then let's go outisde" Yu stated

"Heh...fair enough" Dojima chuckled as he led Yu to the patio where the two sat down "She...Nanako's mother was run over on her way to pick up Nanako from nursery school. It was a cold day, and there was no witnesses, so they didn't find her until much later. Until they got word to me, Nanako was waiting all that time at the nursery...all alone. Waiting for a mother who would never come...I couldn't tell Nanako that her mother was killed. That her father, whose job is to catch criminals...couldn't find a single lead...but I haven't given up. I'll catch the guy. I don't need a private life to do that...Nanako will understand."

"Is that what _she _wants?" Yu asked

"Even if it isn't...she'll understand someday" Dojima sighed "I have to tell myself that...

...

Sorry, could you just...leave me alone for a while"

"Of course" Yu nodded as he began to leave

"Yu" He called out, causing his nephew to halt "If you really love this Chie girl...treasure her, never take her for granted...always tell her that you love her"

"I will..." Yu said as he left his uncle alone

**AUGUST 7/ SAMEGAWA RIVER BANK**

"It's good...I promise" Yukiko stated as she handed him a boxed lunch

Yu took it and admittedly feared the worst when he put a small bit in his mouth

But much to his surprise...

"It's...good!" He said in disbelief "Like...really good!"

"Is it good? Really? Thank goodness..." Yukiko sighed "Er, well of course it is...half the cooking was done by the head chef...he took over again. But he told me I've gotten a lot better! I'm also thinking of continuing my studies for a job license. I don't plan to leave anymore, but I thought I might as well. I'm glad I realized sooner...If I'd struck out on my own, I know I would have regretted it. I wanted to become completely self-sufficient. But I think I was being too presumptuous. I have the inn, I have my family, I have the waitresses and chefs...I am who I am now because I was raised by such a kind group...when I think of it that way, my problems aren't just my own. That's why... I'm going to stay here. By my own will."

"You sure?" Yu asked "You said you were going to travel the world and then decide..."

"I have...this is my home...I can't leave" Yukiko nodded "Everyone is here, including you...I think of you as an irreplaceable friend. No matter how far apart we are, even if we never meet again, that feeling will never change. You're dear to me...and your dear to Chie, I won't interfere with you two. I'll accept you two are together. I'll always be happy for you, and in about 20 years, I'll be the cool Auntie Yukiko to your children!"

"L-Let's not get ahead of ourselves here" Yu gulped

**AUGUST 8/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Umm, you know the photo you found before?" Nanako asked "I gave it back to Dad. He looked happy and smiled at me. Big bro...I love my Dad."

"I know" Yu smiled back

"And I love you too Big Bro!" Nanako smiled as she wrapped her arms around him

"And I love you too" Yu laughed as he hugged her back

"Dad didn't forget about how we used to pick flowers at Samegawa." Nanako said as she broke off the hug "He smiled at me and said, _You remember, too? _Dad loves Mom...I feel sorry for him, losing someone he loves."

"He still has you" Yu told her

"Yeah! I won't go anywhere!" Nanako nodded "I'm glad to be dad's daughter"

_"Motoko...I love you...I want to put his behind us..."_

_"Shinya...I can't forget what you did to me...and Yu...and you have another kid out there? I just...I can't..."_

_"Please...let's just take this job and-"_

"Big bro, you're spacing out again" Nanako pointed out

"Sorry...just..." Yu muttered "Remembering..."

**AUGUST 9/ KOU ICHIJO'S HOME**

"KOU! OPEN THE DOOR!" Daisuke roared as he pounded on the door "KOU!"

...

"Shit..." Daisuke grunted as he stepped back "I'll pay for the door later bro..."

_**BAM**_

"Kou!" Daisuke shouted as he booted the door open and observed the empty apartment "Kou!"

...

"Shit!" Daisuke cursed as he pulled out the phone and called Kou's number "Come on, come on..."

...

_"Hello?"_

"Kou! Thank christ, where are you?!"

_"I took a trip, wanted some fresh air..." _

"All by yourself?! And without telling anyone?" Daisuke questioned "No, bullshit, what's going on, man?"

_"Don't worry about it man, I'm fine..."_

"Kou..." Daisuke warned

_"It has nothing to do with Narukami or Chie...don't worry about that..."_

"Kou..."

_"I'll be back soon okay?"_

"Where are you?!" Daisuke demanded "K-"

_CLICK_

"Kou!" Daisuke shouted as Kou hung up, his instincts told him to call up the others and ask for help, but his own personal feelings about Narukami nulled that

...

"Now..." Kou muttered as he stood before The Attendant and Sho "Tell me...about this world..."

**AUGUST 10/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"I got a phone call from Dad. He's coming home." Nanako smiled "Let's make dinner together, big bro! There's a lot to do today! I brought a bunch of dishes, pickled radish, and veggies at Junes! Big bro, can you make a salad?"

"Of course" Yu nodded

"Can I help too, Nanako-chan?" Motoko asked

"Of course, Auntie!" Nanako nodded happily "We have to start eating our vegetables from now on. A well-balanced diet is important!"

"I'm guessing a teacher told you that?" Yu chuckled

"My teacher said that families help each other." Nanako nodded "After Mom died, Dad and me have both been lonely, but...but I have Dad! And you too Big Bro and you Auntie Motoko! And I need to do my best so Dad doesn't feel lonely either! You're my family, too, so...let's work hard together!"

"Don't strain yourself Nanako-chan" Motoko giggled

"I won't" Nanako pouted

**LATER**

"I'm home." Dojima called

"Dad! Welcome home!" Nanako cried as she wrapped her in a hug

"Y-Yeah." Dojima stuttered

"I made dinner with big bro and Auntie Motoko today! We made salad and, um, um, a bunch of other stuff!" She said as she led Dojima to the table

"I see...good work, Nanako." Dojima smiled

"Go wash your hands! Hurry, sit down!" Nanako commanded

"She's really cheerful." Dojima chuckled as he turned to Yu "I'm sure it's thanks to you."

"Dad, big bro, hurry, hurry!" Nanako demanded

"I got it, I got it. Let's eat, then." Dojima chuckled

**AUGUST 11/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"A cake!? Wow! What are we celebrating!?" Nanako asked

"Uhh, well...today is a special day for us." Dojima said as he and Motoko sat around the table

"A special day...?" Yu asked

"That's right." Motoko nodded as she pulled out a photo of home, not too dissimilar to the Dojima home

"What's this?" Yu asked

"It's a house, same size as this one, three minutes down the road...it's ours Yu" Motoko smiled

"Huh?" Yu questioned

"It's our home" Motoko confirmed "I sorted it out last night..."

"H-Huh?! You're moving?!" Nanako cried

"They're not going far Nanako" Dojima stated "They'll be just down the road, you'll still see them everyday"

"Besides, it isn't like we're moving in tomorrow, we still need move everything from the old home" Motoko told her "We'll still be here for a while"

"This...is a surprise" Yu stated

"Nothing will change...we're staying in Inaba" Motoko smiled "All that's changing is that you'll have all your stuff back"

"I'll still see Big Bro everyday?" Nanako asked "I-It's okay then!"

"Oh, I wouldn't dream of taking him away honey!" Motoko laughed as she wrapped her niece in a hug

"Come on..." Dojima chuckled "Let's eat"

**AUGUST 12/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

_"And now the weather, The week ended on a wet note as rain clouds moved into the area._

_As a result, a thick fog is expected to form in the Inaba region later tonight…"_

"Fog..." Yu muttered

**MIDNIGHT**

"Nothing..." Yu sighed in relief as the Midnight Channel ended, his phone ringing right after

_"Looks like they're all safe..." Yosuke sighed "We're good"_

"Yeah..." Yu sighed "That was the most difficult yet...I'm only now recovering from using Izanagi-no-Okami"

_"I'm just glad...wished I could've-"_

"Don't blame yourself about Ayane" Yu told him once more

_"Yeah..." Yosuke sighed "Yeah...'night"_

"See ya" Yu said as he ended the call

**AUGUST 13/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Wow, I've never seen so many pieces of fatty tuna" Adachi observed "What a great spread!"

"He got off the same time as me so I invited him over" Dojima stated "Though I thought I told you bring your cousin, what was her name again? Labis or something?"

"Oh, she doesn't really eat...anything" Adachi gulped

"Alright, alright, If you keep running your mouth, the sushi's gonna dry up!" Dojima groaned

"Oh, you're right. Sorry!" Adachi apologized

"C'mon everyone, eat up." Dojima said

"Well, since you asked…" Motoko laughed

"Huh? You don't like sushi, Nanako-chan?" Adachi asked

"There's wasabi in it…" The girl muttered

"Ahh, that's right. I forgot to tell them to hold the wasabi." Dojima sighed "Here, I'll take it off for you. Which one do you want? Hmm?"

"Halibut!" She told him

"Excellent taste, Nanako-chan." Adachi smiled "As for me, I'll go for sea urchin…"

"Hey, there's only one of those!" Dojima snapped

"Too late! First come, first serve." Adachi laughed

**GAS STATION**

"I won't do it"

"Excuse me?" The Attendant asked

"I won't do it..." Kou echoed "I hate Narukami...but I won't kill him

"May I remind you of what he did to you?" The Attendant questioned

"I know...I hate him, despise him, but I can't kill him...I-I..."

"Pathetic" Sho spat "Alright then...Plan B..."

"What?" Kou questioned as Sho held a photograph

A photo of his family

"H-Hey! What the hell?!" Kou roared

"That world...I know you desire it...but you lack the gall to complete the task" The Attendant said "So now, we'll give you motivation..."

"Kill Narukami or Mommy. Daddy and precious little sister dies" Sho laughed

...

"I won't..." Kou spat "I'll get the others, we'll stop you"

"Let me show you how that will go..." The Attendant stated as he gripped Kou's head

"W-What are you do-" Kou began to yell before another vision was granted to him

A vision of his family dead, lying before him

"O-Oh god..." Kou gasped as the vision ended

"Your love for them will cause you to mourn..." The Attendant stated as he let go of Kou "Either they die and you mourn...or Narukami dies and you will feel no guilt...and no anger, nor will anyone else and your family will live...Now...what's your answer?"

...

"I'll do it..." Kou said with a deadly glare to the Attendant "I'll kill him..."

* * *

See what happens when life _doesn't _get in the way? I CAN BELT THESE OUT IN A DAY, BHOY!


	15. So Long

**SO LONG...**

"Ah, excellent" The Attendant smiled "Glad to see you saw some sense"

"How...how do you want me to do it...?" Kou asked as he continued to kneel on the floor

"How about you kill him in front of that pretty little girlfriend of his?" Sho chuckled

"I-Infront of Chie?" Kou stuttered, he hadn't even thought about how she would react... "I-I can't..."

"That's a shame" The Attendant chuckled "You seem to believe you have a choice in the matter..."

"Damn it, what the hell do you want?!" Kou roared as he shot to his feet and grabbed the Attendant by the collar "Just what the f-"

"You agreed to this..." The Attendant calmly stated despite the boy practically foaming at the mouth

"Because you threatened my family!" Kou snapped

"But when I showed you that vision, you seemed to drop the idea of fighting back..." The Attendant muttered he grabbed Kou by the arms and removed his hands from his collar "Why then...did you want to ensure your families safety, yet are willing to take a risk with Yu Narukami's safety by fighting back? Deep down, you know...you want Yu Narukami dead..."

...

"I..." Kou muttered as his arms and his gaze dropped down

"Relax Kou Ichijo" The Attendant smiled "The payoff will be worth it"

"I...I'll..."

"Remember the world we promised you...you will feel no guilt" The Attendant stated once more "Make sure he's dead within the week..."

"If he's not..." Sho chuckled as he threw the photo into the air and slashed it in two with one of his blades

"I...I understand..." Kou muttered

"Very good..." The Attendant smiled before Kou began to feel feint once more "We will come for you when the deed is done, until then, goodbye..."

"And don't forget..." Sho stated as he held one of his blades to Kou's back "If you so much as mouth off to one of your buddies about us, you'll end up with a blade in your gut"

"I...I..." Kou tried to speak but fell to the floor as his senses left him, and he awoke later within his home

...

"How do they keep doing that?" Kou asked

**AUGUST 14/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

_"I ran into Yosuke at Junes. He said he was really in a bind because he didn't have enough employees working at Junes. He's probably going to come to you and beg for you to rescue him." Chie stated "He'll be all, _You've gotta save me from this chaos, Yu!_ I feel kinda sorry for him, so I'm gonna help him out this week."_

"Suppose I should too..." Yu sighed "Is my long hair against regulations?"

_"I don't think so..." Chie hummed "I gotta go, me and Yukiko are showing Labrys-san around town"_

"See ya" Yu nodded as he hung up

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"The flavor was a bit strong but it was still good. My grandma's food is kind of bland. Though tofu is good for you, so…" Rise stated as the two walked back from Aiya, however as they approached Marukyu Tofu, they spotted a suspicious man outside the store "Is that a reporter? Or a...stalker?"

"Come on..." Yu stated as he attempted to lead her away

"Uh, th-that's alright. We don't know if he's really dangerous or not. Let's just wait and see, okay?" Rise stated, though she visibly appreciated Yu's gesture as she visably less scared "But…thanks for that..hmm, but still…that guy…where have I…? Inoue-san, is that you!?"

"Rise-chan!" The man with glasses and a blue suit called out as he approached the two

"Wh-Why are you here…?" Rise asked "I already settled everything with the agency…!"

"I'm here because…personally, I can't accept that." Inoue sighed "I've watched over you this entire time as your manager…"

"I'm no longer a _personality_!" Rise stated "My private time doesn't belong to a manager anymore! Go home. If you don't, I'll call the police."

"W-Wait!" Inoue pleaded "Could you just think it over? I strongly believe that no other actress can play that role better than Rise Kujikawa. Your fans were looking forward to the movie, too…"

"You still want me to act…!?" Rise spluttered

"Huh…?" Inoue questioned

"Anyway, I'm through with it! I have nothing to do with showbiz and all that stuff now!" Rise shouted "I…

...

I've decided to marry this man once we graduate high school! I said before it was only a hiatus, but I've changed my mind! There's no way I'm coming back! Yu sees the real me…he's so gentle…!"

...

"I-Is that true?" Inoue asked Yu, the boy clearly saw his friend was desperate, so...

"Yes" Yu nodded as he wrapped his arm around hers

"S-See? I told you…" Rise told, relief evident in her voice

"I understand. I'll go home…for today." Inoue said quietly "B-But I…"

"Go away! Now!" Rise stated as the man finally departed, she waited a while for herself to calm down before explaining to Yu "Oh…u-ummm…that was Inoue-san. He was…my manager. I'm his daughter's age, so he treated me like one of the family…but… he's a stranger now.

…

S-Senpai, umm…I'm sorry…lying about marrying you and all…"

"It's okay" Yu waved if off "I just hope he doesn't go around blabbing about it to a tabloid or something, Chie would be pissed with me"

"Don't worry, he isn't that kind of guy" Rise chuckled "But...thank you"

And with that, she walked into her home

**AUGUST 15/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

_"Hey, it's Yosuke"_

"Saw _this_ coming" Yu stated

_"Huh? Anyway, sorry for dropping this on you all of a sudden, but I need a big favor. Can you work at Junes from today 'til Friday?" Yosuke pleaded "We're short on staff! I'll pay you more than we usually pay our workers! I'll buy you lunch everyday at work too, I promise! Please, I'm begging you!"_

"Sure" Yu sighed "I'll catch the bus with my mom"

_"Thanks! You're a life saver!" Yosuke sighed happily "I'll be waiting bro!"_

**JUNES**

"There you are..." Yosuke sighed as Yu came into sight

"You weren't kidding" Yu whistled as he observed the busy foodcourt

"I called up all the guys too" Yosuke sighed "Kanji and Chie were the only ones who agreed to help, oh, speaking of..."

"Yo!" Kanji greeted as he approached the pair with a farmiliar face behind him

"Huh? Labrys-san? What are you doing here?" Yosuke asked

"Well you said you needed all the help you get" Kanji shrugged "So I went and talked to Labrys-san and she agreed to help"

"A-Are you sure, Labrys-san?" Yosuke questioned

"Sure" Labrys shrugged "If I hav'ta to take off my jacket, then I'll just say my robot body is a some kinda mascot costume"

"O-Okay" Yosuke gulped

"Welcome! We've got shaved ice here, with all your favorite flavors! Cheer on the heroes while enjoying a tasty snack of frosty shaved ice!" Chie stated as he stood behind a stall before groaning "Ugh, it's so hot today!"

"Teddie's keepin' up a pace..." Yu noted as the bear was entertaining a bunch of children

"This is gonna be an interesting few days" Kanji noted

**AUGUST 19/ 5 DAYS LATER**

"It's so hot...why is it so hot?!" Kanji yelled at the sun "Why damnit?!

"Dude, knock it off!" Yosuke snapped

"Welcome, everyone! Beat the heat and eat some meat!" Chie stated as she stood infront of stall which an exhausted Teddie stood behind "Yakikiku! Grilled steak! Pork ginger! Chow down and restore the energy the brutal summer days have taken for you! Try our tender, delicious beef!"

"Man, Teddie is really dedicated, isn't he?" Yosuke noted "I'm melting in this short-sleeved shirt, and he's wearing that huge costume. _and_ he's standing in front of the griddle. How does he do it…?"

"I have no idea" Yu stated as he wiped the sweat off his brow "How are you Labrys-san?"

"Fine?" Labrys shrugged

"These last few days have been fun" Motoko smiled at her son "It's been nice working alongside you"

"Even in this heat?" Yu panted

"Hey, tomorrow's the Summer Festival, remember?" Yosuke asked "Meet us at the shrine tomorrow night, okay?"

**AUGUST 20/ TATSUHIME SHRINE/ FESTIVAL**

"Funny, it's usually more crowded than this..." Yosuke noted as he observed the festival with Yu, Kanji and Teddie who was in human form "Is it because of the murders?"

"Yeah, there ain't that many people here this year. Well, I guess you can't blame people for being scared…" Kanji shrugged "Haven't seen the reporters around, either. They sure are good at stirring shit up and then disappearing. Well, it ain't so bad to have thin crowds. What _is_ important right now is that we go get some ikayaki!"

"Ooh, I wanna get some too!" Teddie cheered "What's ikayaki?"

"Man, they're late…why were they meeting up at Yukiko's house in the first place?" Yosuke sighed

"They'll show up sooner or-" Kanji led on

"Whoa, isn't that them?" Teddie pointed out as the five girls approached them. Both Chie and Nanako draped in a white kimono, Yukiko in a purple one and Rise in a pink one. And Labrys in a plain black one.

"W-Whoa, even Labrys-san looks stunning!" Yosuke said

"Sorry we took so long" Chie apologized

"It took us some time to get dressed." Yukiko stated

"You have to wrap towels inside, so they're not as breezy as everyone says." Rise revealed

"I don't get it, but..." Labrys said as she observed hers which was large and baggy to cover her hands and lack of feet "I guess it's kinda nice..."

"It's kinda hard to walk…" Nanako noted

"You look cute in it." Yu stated to his cousin, causing her to let out a happy giggle

"Nana-chan, you look so cute! I'm head over heels for you!" Teddie cheered

"Thank you." Nanako smiled

"How do we look, Senpai? Does the sight make your heart skip a beat?" Rise giggled

"You're on thin ice, lady..." Chie glared

"Kanji? What're you looking away for?" Yosuke asked the boy who had turned away the instant the girls showed up "Don't tell me you're ashamed to look! What are you, a monk…?"

"Th-That ain't it!" He cried without turning bacl

"Ahaha! You're so cute, Kanji." Rise laughed

"Hey…thanks for looking after her." Dojima greeted as he arrived and took Nanako by the hand

"They bought me cotton candy!" Nanako cheered

"Did they now? Alright then, you wanna go over and do the target prac-I mean game with me?" Dojima asked

"Uh-huh! Let's go!" Nanako nodded

"I'll take care of Nanako from here." Dojima said as he and Nanako began to leave "It's only a few times a year that this town gets charged up like this. You kids should go and have fun."

"Hmmm...a summer festival..." Teddie hummed "A couple walking together at a festival…unused to wearing it, the girl's yukata comes loose...for maximum comfort, she's gone commando…summer has begun."

"What kinda tagline is that…?" Rise asked

"We gotta go two-by-two! Raaaawr!" Teddie roared

"Two-by-two…?" Yukiko questioned

"See, I've been thinking. It's the summer, you're wearing yukata, and we're at a festival." Teddie said with a wag of his finger "It's just wrong for guys and girls to walk around in a huge group like this. We should couple up while we're here! It's the natural way of things!"

"Wh-What the hell are you babblin' about!?" Kanji shouted

"I'm with Teddie!" Rise called, stunning everyone "C'mon, Senpai…why wear yukata in the first place? So we have memories we can remember fondly, right? So we should pair off right away!"

"Rise…what a terrifying girl!" Chie observed "You got a point, though…good memories…"

"I-I'm fine too..." Yukiko nodded "Oh, what I mean is, um…count me in."

"Alright…y-you guys decide how we'll split up." Chie told them

"Huh? Seriously? It's up to us?" Yosuke questioned before the boys huddled together "A-Alright…three guys and four girls, what do we do?"

"Three guys? Aren't you missing one?" Teddie asked

"What? Me, him, and Kanji makes three." Yosuke shrugged

"Whaaa!? You did that on purpose!" Teddie cried

"Uhhh…should I really do this?" Kanji muttered

"Oh yeah…" Yosuke recalled "You can barely look at 'em…"

"N-No way! I can look at 'em! It'll be a chinch, just you watch!" Kanji shouted

"Nah… You should bail, Kanji. It'd be best for everyone that way." Yosuke waved him off

"Wha-!? You don't believe me!?" Kanji spluttered

"Well, I've made my decision…" Teddie stated

"Hey, wait 'til we're done for that!" Kanji told him

"I want Chie-chan and Yuki-chan and Rise-chan and Labby-chan for my partner." Teddie smiled

"That's not a decision! Dude, you're the one who said we gotta pair off in the first place!" Shouted

"I ain't joking here, Ted! If you try and butt in on this-" Kanji glared

"That's right, Kanji! This is serious business! And you're a true man!" Teddie nodded "A true man wouldn't be prancing around with other girls at a place like this!"

"O-Okay…?" Kanji stuttered, confused

"How much more can you butter him up…?" Yosuke grumbled

"Kanji! This is a test to see if you can uphold your status as a true man!" Teddie shouted

...

"'Hell with that shit!" Kanji roared "You guys are trust makin' fun of me!"

"Wha-He figured it out?!" Yosuke gasped

"'The hell with you pricks, I'll go with Labrys-san!" Kanji stomped

"I'll go with Chie, obviously" Yu stated

"Oooh! I'll go with Rise-chan!" Teddie piped

"So that leaves me with Yukiko-san...meh, could be worse" Yosuke shrugged

"Okay, we've decided" Yu told the group of girls

* * *

"So...how you gettin' used to Inaba, Labrys-san?" Kanji asked

"I like it here, it's really peaceful" The Android smiled "Though, it is kinda difficult"

"How so?" Kanji urged on

"Well...I have'ta hide myself away all the time, and I need to cover myself up whenever I go out" Labrys sighed "It's kinda hard y'know? Havin' to constantly pretend to be something you're not..."

"I may not look it, but I know quite a bit about you're talking about" Kanji said with a small smile "I'd tell ya just to be yourself...but quite frankly, people would start to freak out if they realized a robot was walkin' around...oh, that ain't an offensive word, is it?"

"No" Labrys giggled

"Good, good" Kanji chuckled

* * *

"I wish we could've invited Yumi-san, but she's still recovering" Yukiko stated

"Yeah...I wish Ayane was here too..." Yosuke muttered

"Y-Yosuke-kun..." Yukiko stuttered

"I know, I know" Yosuke sighed "Yu told me to stop blaming myself, that is wasn't my fault she was thrown into the TV, but...until we find Minazuki, as far as I'm concerned, I'm too-"

_SMACK_

"Ow!" Yosuke yelped as Yukiko's hand rang around his cheek "Y-Yukiko-san, what the hell?!"

"I'm sorry, was that too rough?" Yukiko apologized

"Why did you even slap me in the first place?!" Yosuke yelped

"Because, I won't let you blame yourself!" Yukiko said "Yu-kun is right! Minazuki is to blame, not you!"

"But-"

"No buts!" Yukiko snapped "Do you want me to slap you again?!"

...

"Ha...ahahahaha!" Yosuke laughed, soon joined by Yukiko, earning them quite a few stares

...

"I'm sorry..." Yosuke exhaled "I just...I think I needed that slap, my mind's clear for the first time in ages, thanks Yukiko-san..."

"I never noticed this...but you have scars on your face" Yukiko noted

"Oh yeah, I got them in the fight with Adachi-san's shadow" Yosuke stated "They're only temporary...they'll heal"

"They..." Yukiko muttered as she ran her finger along one of the scars on his cheek "Look painful..."

"They don't hurt as much now..." Yosuke stated "I...H-Hey Yukiko-san?"

"Yeah?"

"Y-You're touching my face" Yosuke gulped

"O-Oh!" Yukiko gasped as she immediately removed her hand, both parties fearcly blushing "I-I'm sorry..."

"It's fine..." Yosuke muttered as he averted his eyes "Oh hey, candy apples" Yosuke

"Ooh, let's go!" Yukiko cheered

* * *

"I've been thinking about what you said...about you wanting to get married one day" Chie noted

"Oh god, it _did _freak you out" Yu gulped "Listen, I-"

"Hang on, lemme explain" Chie interrupted "I've been thinking about it...and I realized that if things keep going the way they are now, it's pretty inevitable that we're gonna get married at one point"

"Y-You make that sound like a bad thing..." Yu gulped

"W-Well...I don't wanna be one of those people who gets married straight after high school" Chie stated "I wanna be ready, I-"

"Chie I'm not saying I wanna marry you _right now_" Yu informed her "I'm talking like, five, maybe ten years"

"I-I know!" Chie said "I mean it's way too soon to be talking about that kinda stuff! I mean we're only 17 and we've only been together since May!

...

I mean...we haven't even done..._other stuff_...y'know? The stuff...couples do before marriage...you know?"

"O-Oh..." Yu gulped "I...I see..."

"I mean...we haven't even..." Chie led on "Gotten jobs, planned to buy a house, or-"

"Had sex" Yu said bluntly

...

"Y-Y-Y-Yeah, that..." Chie blushed pure red "I mean...we...haven't even..."

"Do...do...you" Yu stuttered "I mean...do you want...to...y'know...?"

"U-U-U-U-U-U-U-Uhhhh..." Chie stuttered as her face was now completely red "I-I-I-I didn't mean I want to those things right now, besides, we've only made out a few times! We haven't felt each other up or-AH! What am I saying?!"

...

"Awkward..." Yu gulped

"Y-Yeah..." Chie said with a small giggle

"Let's just forget this conversation" Yu stated "C'mon, I'll buy you a candy apple"

"Sounds good..." Chie smiled "They'll be plenty of time to talk about this stuff in the future...after all, it's not like you're leaving in March anymore"

"True" Yu nodded "Inaba...is my home now"

* * *

"AH! Teddie! What're you doing buying another Idols photo?! Mine is in there too y'know!" Rise snapped

**AUGUST 21/ TATSUHIME SHRINE/ FESTIVAL DAY 2**

"I've been thinking about the conversation we had yesterday..." Chie said

"R-R-Really?" Yu gulped "I-I-I thought we weren't going to talk about it.."

"I know, but..." Chie sighed "I...If...when we do that...I want us to be safe...I mean, I want-"

"Chie..." Yu stated "I'm going to whisper something to you and I want you answer me truthfully"

"O-O-Okay" Chie nodded as Yu moved closer to her and whispered in her ear

"Do you want to...you know?" Yu asked

...

"Someday...yes" Chie admitted "But...for right now, this is fine"

"I'm glad you agree" Yu smiled as he took her by her hand and planted a small kiss on her lips

However, unbeknownst to him, they two had an observer. Standing at entrance of the shrine, with cold, unsure eyes was Kou Ichijo, wrapped in a winter jacket

With a knife up his sleeve

_"I have to...If I don't...Mom, Dad and Sachiko...he'll kill them...remember...no guilt...that world they'll give us will be better than this one...I...I...I'll kill him, right there, beside her..."_

...

"I'm sorry Chie..." Kou gulped as he began to walk forward

"There you are!"

"Wha-" Kou began to shouted as a hand grabbed his shoulder and turned him around "D-Daisuke?!"

"What the hell man?!" Daisuke roared "Where the hell have you been?! Your family's been worried sick! _I've _been worried sick!"

"I...I..." Kou muttered "Just..."

"Kou...Daisuke..." Yu muttered as he and Chie spotted the two

"Oh great..." Daisuke groaned "Will you two just-"

"No...it's okay Daisuke" Kou interrupted before turning around to Yu and Chie "I finally get it..."

"What do you mean?" Yu asked

"You got the girl...I lost" Kou stated, stunning everyone "Chie chose you, not me...I'll leave you alone...I won't bother you again. You two take care..."

And then, just like that, Kou Ichijo departed

"W-Wait up!" Daisuke called as he followed him

"D-Did that just happen?" Yu asked

"Is...is he serious?" Chie questioned

"Kou!" Daisuke shouted as he finally caught up "W-What was that about man?!"

"I finally saw how those two looked at each other" Kou simply stated "You should'a seen the look she was giving him...they held hands, kissed and everything. Those two are in love..."

"Kou..." Daisuke muttered

"She loves him..." Kou said as he twisted his head to Daisuke "Not me...don't hold anything against him for that"

"Y-You're not making any sense!" Daisuke snapped

"Leave it Daisuke...they're together..." Kou sighed "Let's just move on..."

"Kou, what the hell?!" Daisuke roared as twisted the boy around to face him "What is going on with you?! You practically drop off the face of the earth for a few days and now you're suddenly okay with Satonaka and Narukami?! What happened to you?"

...

"I don't have time for regrets anymore, wondering what could've been...there's no point" Kou stated "I know Chie will never be with me now...

...

I'm gonna go speak to my family, I'll see ya"

"Kou!" Daisuke called out as he tried to grab him again, only for Kou to swat away his hand

"It's okay man, I'll see you tomorrow, and I promise...I'll explain everything"

"Kou..." Daisuke muttered as his friend left once again

**ICHIJO HOUSEHOLD**

"Not that I don't appreciate it, but what made you stop by?" Kou's father asked

"Just wanted to say hi..." Kou chuckled

"We've been worried sick" Kou's mother sternly informed him "Well over a week and no sightings, you didn't answer the door, you didn't call..."

"I know...and I'm sorry" Kou sighed "I just needed some time to clear my mind about some things"

"So...how's life? You make any moves on the girl in the track jacket yet?" Kou's father chuckled

"Nah...she's dating Narukami, that guy from Basketball who transfered here in April" Kou admitted with a huff

"Wha-Oh come on! Be a man and tell him to back off!" Kou's father encouraged "I mean you liked her first!"

"Nah...Chie-san seems...pretty taken with him" Kou hummed

"I'm sorry dear..." Kou's mother said "But don't worry, they're's still plenty of fish in the sea"

"Bah..." Kou's father spat

"Big bro!" Came the call of Sachiko, Kou's younger sister as she ran into the room

"Hey there!" Kou laughed as his little sister wrapped in a hug

"Where have you been Big Bro?" Sachiko asked with a pout

"Sorry, I took a little trip to clear my head" Kou said as he rubbed her hair "But it's okay...I'm back now"

"Are you going to stay for dinner?" Kou's mother asked

"Sure, if there's enough" Kou nodded

"Of course" Kou's mother smiled

**LATER**

"Bye..." Kou muttered as he headed for the door

"Hang on" Kou's father called out "I'll walk you home..."

"T-That's not nessacery" Kou told him

"Nah, it's fine, I need to stretch my legs anyway...plus with those murders goin' on..." Kou's father stated as he threw on his jacket "Don't want you out this late by yourself"

...

"Thanks Dad..." Kou smiled as he and his father walked out of the home and began to walk down the street

"So...you lost the girl, huh?" Kou's father asked

"Yeah...yeah I did" Kou sighed "I was angry...confused and sad, the whole shebang, but I finally realized, she's happy with him...if she's happy, then that's good enough for me"

"So, what made you realize that?" Kou's father asked

"Just realized...how much she would hate me if I tried to interfere. During that time I took to clear my head, I realized I had no chance with her" Kou said with a chuckle "Even if Narukami just dropped dead out of the blue, she wouldn't even look at any other guy the same way, let alone me"

"Well...life sucks sometimes kiddo" Kou's father sighed as the two continued walking

"Yeah...yeah, it does..." Kou muttered

"You're kinda scaring me kiddo" Kou's father admitted "First you vanished back in April, and now you're not your regular self, it's almost as if you're carrying a heavy burden of your shoulders..."

"Yeah...something like that" Kou quietly said "I guess I'm facing reality now..."

"You can always talk to me..." Kou's father said as the arrived before Kou's home "I'm always be here..."

"Yeah...thanks" Kou smirked as his father began to depart "Hey, Dad?"

"Yeah?" He called back

"Thanks..." Kou smiled "For everything...for taking me in, raising me as your son, this talk...everything"

...

"You're not on drugs are you?"

"No" Kou chuckled

"Alright..." Kou's father chuckled as he finally departed "Take care...and make sure you actually turn off your lights before you leave next time"

"Wha-" Kou began to question before he observed a light that was shining through the front window "What the hell..."

Quickly scrambling to get his keys, he unlocked the door and jumped into his home, running to the front room, where he discovered the source of the light which was a lamp on a corner table, which also illuminated his couch. Where Sho sat, with the contents of his fridge scattered on the table

"There you are..." Sho sighed before pointing to mess of food packets "You took so long so I just helped myself..."

"What the hell are you doing here?" Kou growled

"Why..._Why_?! Let me ask you a question" Sho spat as he stood up "_Why_ isn't Yu Narukami dead?!"

"I...I haven't gotten a chance" Kou said with a gulp

"We gave you a week..." Sho glared as he approached Kou "We warned you what would happen..."

"Listen to me-" Kou began to plead, however, in an instant Sho gripped Kou by the throat and slammed him to the wall, where he pinned him and held one of his swords to his throat

"_You _listen to _me_!" Sho roared as he pressed the steel against Kou's jugular "You _will _kill him...If you don't, I'll drag you back and make you watch me slaughter your precious little family. I'll gut your dad, rape your mom and then slit your sisters throat and force you to watch every goddamn second..."

...

"I-I understand" Kou muttered

"Louder!" Sho demanded

"I-I Understand!" Kou shouted

...

"You have until tomorrow" Sho said as he let him go, causing him to slump to the floor "I'll be watching your every move to make sure you get the job done"

...

_SLAM_

Hearing the door slam, confirming his exit. Kou slumped down, his eyes rising up, examing the kitchen knifes in the room...

* * *

"Welcome to the Velvet Room..."

"Huh?" Yu muttered as he awoke in the familiar limo "Oh here..."

"Indeed..." Margaret muttered as Yu observed the room

"Where's..."

"My Master is currently absent" Margaret pointed out Igor's absence "I requested to talk to you alone"

"O-Okay" Yu nodded

"Listen to me, you are in grave danger..." Margaret stated "Someone is currently aiming for you, intent on ending your life..."

"Well...I know" Yu stated "We're investigating a murder, we-"

"That is not what I mean..." Margaret said with a shake of her head "Another aims for your life"

"S-Seriously?" Yu questioned "Who?"

"As much as I wish I could, I cannot speak the name..." Margaret admitted "I am forbidden from doing so..."

"By who?!" Yu asked "If someone's after me, I wanna know who!"

"I am forbidden..." Margaret said sadly "I am physically unable to...I am not human, I was created with limitations, only my creator can lift these limitations from me"

"Igor?" Yu questioned

"No, my master too, is a creation...he is the right hand of our creator, and I am the left..." Margaret stated

"Then who is your creator?" Yu asked

"Once again...I am unable to state. Though I can say that he represents the good of humanity, and by that extent, as do I..." Margaret said "We here in the Velvet Room are the hopes and dreams of humanity given physical form"

"So...what can I do?" Yu asked

"All I can do is warn you..." Margaret said "It appears you are starting to awaken in the real world"

"W-Wait!" Yu called as he began to fade

"Good luck Yu Narukami..." Margaret stated "For the sake of humanity...you must live"

And with that, the boy faded back into the real world. Leaving Margaret alone with the driver of the limo. Who rolled down the window concealing him and turned to ask Margaret a question

"Sister?" He asked

"Yes, Theodore?" Margaret asked back

"Forgive me if I am prying but..." Theodore led on "You seem to be concerned for the boy, in the same way that Elizabeth felt for our previous guest...is that possible that you-"

"As I said, he must live..." Margaret told him "Our master has informed me of his potential. Only he can stop the oncoming darkness..."

"Is it true, then?" Theodore asked "The dark presence our master felt around him...is it...?"

"Perhaps..." Margaret sighed

"Sister, if it is...then-"

"Theodore?"

"Y-Yes?" Theodore stuttered

"Shut up and drive or I will force you to eat an entire jar of cinnamon" Margaret coldly stated

"Y-Y-Y-Yes Ma'am!" Theodore yelped as he rolled up the window

**AUGUST 22/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD/ EVENING**

_"I want to talk to you..."_

"Kou..." Yu muttered "It's...pretty late, I..."

_"I just wanna talk..." Kou said softly "Meet me at the Tatsuhime shrine, no...Aiya, meet me at Aiya, outside it, okay?"_

"Kou..." Yu muttered "It won't even be open, it's almost midnight"

_"Come on...please" Kou pleaded "I need to talk to you, right now"_

"I..." Yu began to state before the clicking sound indicated that Kou had hung up "What..."

However, before he closed the phone, Margaret's voice rang through his ears

_"You are in grave danger"_

...

"He wouldn't..." Yu muttered "I mean..."

...

_CLICK CLICK CLICK_

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Okay...I'm here" Yu stated as he approached the boy stood in front of the closed store "What...do you want? If this is about Chie, then-"

"No..." Kou muttered "Chie doesn't have anything to do with this, this is about me and you..."

"So what is it?" Yu asked "I thought you said you never wanted to speak to me again?"

...

"I know...but that's fine...this will be our last conversation" Kou stated as he pulled out something from his pocket

A knife

"Kou..." Yu muttered in shock as he took a step back

"I..I'm sorry...but..." Kou gulped as his hands shook "I..."

"Kou...you don't have to do this..." Yu stated "If this is about Chie, this has gone way too far..."

"I told you...it has nothing to do with that" Kou said "I...I have to do this Yu...I'm sorry but I have to...he'll...he'll kill them if I don't"

"Kou...who's _he_?" Yu asked as he began to sweat buckets "Look, whatever it is...I can help"

"No...no you can't" Kou muttered as he began to close in, before he bit his lip and closed his eyes "Damn it...this is all your fault!"

"Kou, stop...!" Yu pleaded

"I can't!" Kou roared as tears began to sting the edge of his eyes "I...I have to..."

...

"So long..." Kou muttered as he pulled back the knife, intending to jab it forward

"KOU!"

_SMACK_

"Argh!" Kou cried out as he was tackled down the ground, causing the knife to slide out of his hand

"Get the knife!" Came the loud roar of Yosuke

"Got it!" Kanji called as he picked it up

Pinned to the ground, Kou observed the arrivals. Yosuke, Chie, Yukiko, Kanji, Rise and Teddie had arrived, and the one who had tackled him and was holding him to the ground was Daisuke

"Damn it, let me go!" Kou snapped

"Stop it, damn it!" Daisuke shouted "What the shit is this about man?! You're actually trying to fucking kill Narukami?!"

"It's a damn good thing you called us..." Yosuke muttered "That chick in the Velvet Room was right..."

"Stop, get off me!" Kou cried "You don't understand! I have to-"

"Well, well, well..."

"Huh?" Kanji questioned as unfamiliar voice that began to approach them "Who the-"

"M-Minazuki!" Kou gasped

"Minazuki?!" Daisuke gasped the red haired boy stopped before them

"Wait, _that _Minazuki?!" Yosuke gaped

"The same..." Sho coldly stated as he unsheathed his blades

"Oh shit..." Kanji muttered as he brandished the knife he got from Kou

"Relax, I have no intentions of killing all of you..." Sho stated before gazing at Kou "I'll be heading once I take care of him..."

"B-Back off!" Daisuke demanded as he shot up

"I told you...kill Narukami or your family dies" Sho glared

"W-Wait, what?!" Chie gasped

"Is that what this was about?!" Chie gasped

"But you've failed..." Sho stated "And you know the consequences..."

"Get away!" Daisuke demanded as he stood infront of Minazuki, preventing him from leaving

"Move..." Sho demanded as he pointed the blade "What can you do? I'll cut your head off the instant you get too close"

"Kanji, the knife!" Yosuke called

"Y-Yeah!" Kanji nodded as he closed in on Sho, knife in hand, only for Sho to hold up his other sword, halting Kanji

"I wouldn't do that if I were you" Sho smirked

...

"Kanji...back off" Kou commanded as he stood up

"H-Hey, what the hell are you doing?!" Kanji cried as Kou stepped in front of him

"I just saw Rise call the cops the instant you showed up...they'll be here soon" Kou stated "You have nowhere to go..."

"That so?" Sho chuckled

"You're not killing anyone...you won't manipulate me anymore" Kou glared "It's over..."

"You know that's a lie" Sho laughed "Even if you take me out..."

"I'm not afraid..." Kou said sternly "It's over, we've stopped you and-"

"Such a shame..."

_**SHUNK **_

"You really seemed promising" Sho sighed as his blade plunged through Kou's chest

"K-" Yu stuttered as Kou fell to the ground in a heal

"Oh my god..." Chie gasped

"KOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Daisuke screamed

He then proceeded to lunge at Minazuki, earning him a slash on his leg, sending him straight to the floor

"Daisuke-senpai!" Kanji called out before he brandished the knife yet again but just like Daisuke, was slashed on the thigh

"Hahahahaha!" Sho laughed before he began to scamper away "Sorry boys, looks like I'm getting away today!"

"O-O-Oh my god!" Rise screamed at the bloody Kou

"Ambulance!" Yukiko screamed "Call an ambulance!"

"B-B-B-But the police are on the way!" Teddie yelped

"That doesn't matter! We need an ambulance!" Yosuke roared as Chie quickly dialed the emergency number

"H-Hello, yes, ambulance please!" Chie pleaded to the person on the other side of the phone "It's out friend, he's been stabbed, he's-"

"Kou!" Yu yelled as he quickly ran over, blood pouring from his chest "Oh god, w-w-what do I? P-Put pressure on the wound?"

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry..." Kou gurgled through the blood that was leaking from his lungs and out his mouth "It's all my fault!"

"Kou!" Daisuke shouted as he limped over and immediately applied pressure "Oh god, no! Oh my god, no! Please, please, please..."

"I'm sorry..." Kou muttered "Narukami, I'm sorry about what I said to...you and Chie...I-I'm so...s..."

"D-Don't speak!" Yu commanded "You're gonna be okay, just wait for the ambulance!"

"My fucking leg!" Kanji roared as he held his wound

"Kanji?" Came a voice from the nearby Tatsumi Textiles that exited the store

"M-Mom!" Kanji stuttered

"K-Kanji, what's going on? What are you-" Kanji's mother began but then spotted the bleeding boy on the road "O-O-Oh my god!"

"Rise?" Came the call of Rise's grandmother from the nearby Marukyu Tofu "What's going on?"

"Oh god no..." Daisuke uttered as tears ran down his face as Kou continued to gurgle blood, the lights from nearby homes began to shine as several more people exited their homes to witness the commotion "Don't you dare! DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE DIE!"

"T-Tell my family..." Kou weakly stated "I...I...I'm so...rry...Daisuke...I'm..so...sorry..."

...

...

...

"Kou?"

...

"Kou...Kou!" Daisuke screamed as Kou's eyes closed "Oh god...no...god no, please!"

"Oh no..." Yukiko gasped

"No...Kou...!" Yu muttered

"Kou, please...talk, say something!" Daisuke pleaded "Kou! KOU! OPEN YOUR EYES! PLEASE!

KOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"


	16. I'm Sorry

**I'M SORRY**

"Everything they said checks out..." Adachi stated "Each one of them gave an identical description of the attacker, red hair, green shirt, scar on his face, Yaso-Inaba High Uniform..."

"Christ almighty..." Dojima sighed "All this time and the murderer was a kid..."

"I ran down the name they gave us with the school...but..." Adachi muttered

"_But_...?" Dojima egged on

"They'd never heard of him" Adachi told him "They checked every class record and couldn't find Sho Minazuki on any roster"

"Then what the hell...first he changes his method of murders and now he's hiding in a school?!" Dojima cursed "Damn it..."

"Tatsumi-kun and Nagase-kun are being treated for their injuries" Adachi stated "Nothing major but they'll need stitches...all the others are okay"

"At least...Yu is okay" Dojima sighed as he buried his head in his hands "Motoko was hysterical when I told her about what happened"

"Excuse me Detectives" A nearby voice rang our

"Hmm, oh, Detective Shirogane?" Adachi questioned

"Your sweepers missed this" Naoto said as he handed Adachi an object, wrapped in a clear plastic bag as to not comtaminate the evidence "Please take more care in looking for evidence

"A knife?" Adachi questioned

"It was found nearby the crime scene, thrown in the bushes" Naoto stated "There's no visible blood but its possible that it's been cleaned"

"Are you saying this could be the murder weapon?" Dojima questioned

"No, the size of the knife does correspond the size of Kou Ichijo's wound, that wound was made with a larger blade, possibly a machete or even a sword" Naoto said as he adjusted his hat "But the fact that it was nearby surely cannot be a coincidence"

"Are you sure?" Dojima questioned

"Whenever you eliminate the impossible, whatever is left, no matter how improbable, must be the truth" Naoto quoted

"Ooh, ooh! I know this one! Sherlock Holmes right?!" Adachi piped

"Shut up Adachi" Dojima groaned

"I also understand the victim was a friend of your Nephew's...I am deeply sorry" Naoto apologized

"It's...fine..." Dojima sighed as he picked up the phone "Adachi, run the knife for prints..."

"Yes, sir" Adachi nodded as he departed

"Something wrong Detective?" Naoto asked Dojima

"I hate this part..." Dojima stated "The call to the victim's family...this changes everything, his parents are going to learn they don't have a son anymore..."

...

"I...recall the phonecall that informed me of my parents death" Naoto stated

"Weren't you just a child at the time?" Dojima questioned

"I was and I did not fully comprehend what I was being told, I recall sitting there at the door day after day...waiting for them to come home" Naoto said "I can stay...if you'd like"

"It's okay..." Dojima said "I've done this before"

"As you wish..." Naoto nodded before leaving

...

_"Yes...I understand" _

"I wish I could have done something..." Katsuya sighed

_"Do not blame yourself..." Mitsuru's voice rang "We had no idea what would happen..."_

"A boy is dead..." Katsuya stated "Because of Minazuki..."

_"As before, we'll do our best to track him down...we have an appearance now..." Mitsuru told him "We'll find him and prevent him doing this ever again..."_

"Yes, Mitsuru-san..." Katsuya sighed

**AUGUST 23/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"There's so much..." Nanako groaned as he slaved over her pile of her homework

"Well you shouldn't have blown it off until the end of summer!" Dojima scolded her

"Big Bro told me he would help me with my homework sometime, I'm gonna go get him!" Nanako said happily as he headed for the stairs

"Oh, honey, no..." Motoko stopped her "Yu...isn't feeling well"

"Is he sick?" Nanako questioned

"Yu's...very upset" Motoko told her "His friend...had to go away..."

...

"Did he...die?" Nanako questioned, stunning both adults

...

"Y-Yes...he did" Dojima admitted

"Oh..." Nanako said softly "Just like Mom..."

"Nanako..." Dojima muttered

"I'll leave him alone..." Nanako said as she returned to the table

"She's...oddly understanding" Motoko whispered to her brother

"Well, she's had expierence with this..." Dojima sighed "Though quite frankly, I'm a little concerned about sending her back to school next week...a kid was just murdered in the middle of the street"

"Yu isn't going back" Motoko said sternly

"What are you talking about?" Dojima questioned "Of course he is, he has to!"

"No! No he is not!" Motoko said sharply "I'm not even letting him out of the house until this whole murder fiasco is settled!"

"Motoko..." Dojima groaned "You can't shelter him, he-"

"He was almost killed!" Motoko shrieked

"No I wasn't" Came a voice that was coming down the stairs

"Y-Yu!" Dojima stated as his nephew came down the stairs, clad in sweat pants, a long sleeved shirt with messed up hair and his eyes were clearly bloodshot

"I wasn't attacked, Kou was...Kanji and Daisuke too" Yu said sternly "All that happened to me was that I had to watch him die..."

"Yu..." His mother muttered

"Kou's the one who's dead...not me..." Yu said before he turned to go back up the stairs

"Yu, wait!" Motoko called "Stay down here...you haven't eaten today, you've just been laying in bed all day..."

"I'm not hungry" Yu simply stated as he attempted to ascend them once more before his mother called to him once more

"Yu...please...just...stay down here for a while" Motoko pleaded

"Why?" Was his blunt question

"I just..." Motoko muttered "I just want to be a mother to my son...for once in my life"

...

Sighing, Yu turned around and faced his mother and shrugged

"What do you want Mom?" Yu asked "I-"

Whatever statement he was going to make was cut off by the hug his mother wrapped him in

"What are you..." Yu muttered

"We're all here..." Dojima said as he placed his hand on his Nephew's shoulder before he too joined in on the hug "Nanako, you get in here too..."

The litte girl, without another word, ran over and clutched onto Yu's leg

"We're your family..." Motoko muttered to her son

**TATSUMI TEXTILES**

"Damn it!" Kanji cursed as he dropped the box he was carrying and clutched the wound on his leg

"Kanji!" His mother called out as she scampered over to him

"I'm fine..." Kanji groaned "I don't think the stitches ripped..."

"You should even be lifting..." Kanji's mother told him "You're...you..."

"'Ma?" Kanji questioned as his mother's lip began to quiver but the woman broke into a sob and wrapped her hands around her son..."

"Don't you ever leave me Kanji Tatsumi..." His mother said through her tears

"'Ma?" Kanji questioned once again "What's gotten into you?"

"T-T-That could have easily been you last night..." Kanji's mother said "I wouldn't know what to do if I lost you..."

"'Ma...I'm still here" Kanji softly said to her

"But I could have lost you..." She sobbed "I...I..."

"'Ma..." Kanji muttered

"I'm so sorry about your friend..." Kanji's mother said softly "I'm so sorry..."

**AMAGI INN**

"Yuki-chan...you've been cooking all day..." Kasai said to the girl

"I just...wanted to try and improve my cooking today" She stated as she poured the vegetables into the dish

...

"It's okay, y'know...to feel sad" Kasai told her "I've been working here since the 70's when your grandmother ran the inn...the place fell into a great depression when she died, but when we grieve, we know that one day, things will get better..."

"I'm fine..." Yukiko said

"Yuki-"

"I SAID I'M FINE!" Yukiko roared as he flipped the pot over, stunning the kitchen into silence

"Yukiko..." Came a soft voice from the door, that belonged to her mother

"Mom...I'm sorry, I just..." Yukiko muttered

"It's okay...I'll take it from here Kasai..." Yukiko's mother stated as she walked over to her daughter

"Of course Ma'am" Kasai bowed before taking her leave

"Yukiko...sweetie" Her mother muttered before wrapping the girl in a hug

"He killed him...right there in front of me..." Yukiko whispered before breaking into tears

"Oh my baby girl..." Yukiko's mother muttered as she held her crying daughter

**HANAMURA HOUSEHOLD**

"Thank you for your help Teddie..." Yosuke's mother smiled

"My pleasure Ma'am..." Teddie smiled

"Yosuke, damn it..." Yosuke's father sighed as he looked up the stairs "Dinnertime! This is the fourth time I've called you"

"Kazuchika, I think he wants to be left alone..." Yosuke's mother stated

"He can't mope in there forever..." Yosuke's father siehed

"Are you serious?! A boy was _murdered_ right in front of him, _his friend_!" Yosuke's mother snapped "He's probably traumatised!"

"He can't just-" He muttered again "What do I do...?"

"I don't know..." Yosuke's mother sighed

"I'll talk to him..." Teddie piped in "I was there too..."

"Thank you Teddie..." Yosuke's mother sighed once again as Teddie scampered up the stairs to Yosuke's room

"Yosuke?" Teddie questioned as he poked his head into his room. Peering the boy sitting on the bed

"What'dya want Ted...?" Yosuke sighed

"Your parents are concerned..." Teddie said "You haven't left your room all day, you-"

"Ayane's in a coma, Kou's dead..." Yosuke muttered "Of course I'm fucking miserable..."

...

"But...sitting here won't change anything..." Teddie told him

"Kou died, right there in front of us and we couldn't do a damn thing about it!" Yosuke roared "Ted...don't you get it...we failed"

"No!" Teddie said sternly "We lost Ichijo-san...but if we give up now, Minazuki will just kill more...until he kills us too..."

...

"What can we do Ted?" Yosuke asked "Minazuki...what can we do about him?"

"We have to stop him" Teddie told him

**SATONAKA HOUSEHOLD**

"You haven't touched your dinner..." Chie's mother noted

"I'm...not hungry" Chie said softly as she put her chopsticks down

"Never in my life did I think I'd hear that..." Chie's father stated "Chie..."

"I can't eat...not after that" Chie muttered

"W-Why don't we invite Yu-kun over?" Chie's mother asked "You're always so happy when you're with him..."

"Yu's worse off than me..." Chie said with a gulp

"I wish I knew what to say in this situation..." Chie's father admitted "But I have no idea what you're going through...I'm so sorry Chie"

...

Trying to get a word out, the girl simply broke down crying, and both her parents held her as she did...

**MARUKYU TOFU**

"Rise...take the rest of the day off" Her grandmother demanded

"I'm fine..." Rise stated flatly

"We don't even have any customers today..." Rise's Grandmother told her "Everyone's been avoiding the shopping district today..."

...

"Kou-Senpai didn't deserve to die..." Rise said with a quivering lip "He didn't..."

"I know dear...I know..." Her Grandmother said as she walked over and wrapped her in a hug

**1 WEEK LATER/ AUGUST 30**

**KOU ICHIJO'S FUNERAL**

"Do you guys wanna get something to eat?" Yosuke asked the group who was entirely clad in black as they left the cemetary

"Sure..." Yu nodded "Haven't really been eating this week..."

"Don't think any of us have..." Kanji stated

"We...won't let this slow us down..." Chie said "We need to find Minazuki...now more than ever"

"Come on...let's go to Aiya..." Yosuke nodded

* * *

"Mommy...why did they put Big Bro in the ground?"

"Hush, Sachiko..." Her mother told her

"Again...I'm so sorry" Dojima stated to the family "If there's anything I can do..."

"Do you have children Detective?" Kou and Sachiko's father asked

"I do...I have a daughter" Dojima nodded

"Then you know...that when you have children, something inside you awakens, it makes you want to protect them...and when you know you've failed to do just that...it's the worst feeling in the world" Kou's father stated "_You_ get to go home to your child...You want to help Detective? Find the man who killed my boy..."

...

"I'll do my very best" Dojima nodded

* * *

"Hey..." Daisuke uttered to the tombstone "Guess...this is it huh?

...

I...I'm still kinda hoping this is all a dream and I'll wake up and it'll turn out none of this is actually happening. I...I...I don't even know why I'm saying this, it's not like you can respond...but...I just want to tell you that I'll miss you. You were my best friend...my brother...I wish I could have just...I'm going to listen to what you told me, I'm not gonna hold Narukami or Satonaka responsible for anything...I just hope...you're in a better place

...

I'm gonna find the guy who did this...I promise"

_CLINK_

Daisuke looked on as an image of his Persona appeared before him. The blue dragon like creature was now white with a long mane of red hair, with beared fangs and large horns

_**FACING THE TURMOIL WITHIN ONE'S HEART, DAISUKE NAGASE'S RESOLVE HAS AWOKEN HIS TRUE POWER, "FUJIN" HAD BECOME "RYUJIN"**_

* * *

**AIYA**

"To Kou" Yosuke said as he raised a glass of water

"_To Kou_" The group said in unison as they too raised their glasses

"You never leave me...you got it?" Chie whispered to Yu "If you die before me, I'll dig up your corpse and beat you so bad, you'll come back to life just to beg for mercy..."

"Don't worry..." Yu said with a small smile

"We're gonna find him..." Yosuke said to group

"And turn his ass in to the cops..." Kanji nodded

"E-Excuse me?"

"Huh? Oh, Yumi..." Yu noted the approaching girl

"I know today really isn't really the best day..." Yumi muttered as he walked up to the group "But..."

"It's okay..." Yukiko told her "We-"

"I'll help with the explanations" Came the voice of...

"D-Daisuke..." Yu muttered

"Listen...whatever conflicts we had in the past, forget it, I don't care about that anymore" Daisuke said "All I want to do...is find the guy who killed my friend...and I can't do that without you all...what I'm saying is..."

"You're officially welcomed back into the Investigation Team" Yu nodded

"Thanks" Daisuke smirked as he pulled up a chair "So...where do we start with Yumi?"

**AUGUST 31/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Um, I got a call from Dad…he said someone gave him a watermelon." Nanako smiled "It's too big for us to eat, so he said you should call your friends over. Do you think Teddie and your other friends can come?"

"I'll see" Yu smiled as he pulled out his phone

...

_"Watermelon? Whoa, definitely! I haven't had any yet this year." Yosuke said excitedly "I'm gonna call up the others, so you better not smack it open before we get there!"_

**LATER**

"It's so cramped in here" Motoko noted as Yosuke, Nanako, Rise, Chie, Yumi, Daisuke, Teddie, Yukiko and Kanji all stood in the room

"Man, a watermelon! 'Cause of all the stuff that's gone down this summer, I completely missed out." Kanji cheered "So where is it? The fridge?"

"Gee, Kanji. They invited us over…at least show some manners." Rise groaned

"We gotta smack it open first." Yosuke explained

"Huh? Are we seriously gonna do that? We can't eat it if it gets all crushed." Chie noted

"But, but, doesn't it sound like fun?" Yukiko asked

"I wanna do it too!" Nanako smiled

"I'll swing at it with everything I've got!" Teddie cheered "The splattering fruit juice! Bursts of joy! One night of live…the bitter sweetness of those days is the essence of youth!"

"That makes no sense at all…" Yosuke grumbled "And dude, will you cut out those commercial lines of yours!?"

"That's the essence of youth!" Nanako cheered

"Oh great, now you got her goin'..." Daisuke sighed

"I'm home-whoa, that's a lot of shoes. How many people are here?" Dojima stated as he entered the home

"Welcome home!" Nanako piped happily "Um, let's split the watermelon open!"

"Say what!?" Dojima questioned "Uh, well, you see…"

* * *

"C'mon Nanako, don't pout. Everyone came to hang out, right?" Dojima pleaded to girl who was upset that Dojima had already split up the Watermelon and shared it with the neighbors "I'm really sorry...it never occurred to me that you'd want to do that"

"Hey, Nanako-chan. Let's do it again sometime." Chie smiled "Next time, we'll do it right-at the beach!"

"Seconded!" Rise added

"Whoa…does that mean we get to see you guys in swimsuits!?" Yosuke choked "Oh…but there probably aren't enough days left. We'll have to do it next year…"

"Next year…" Nanako muttered "Will you play with me next year too?"

"Of course we will!" Chie nodded

"You betcha!" Kanji and Yukiko said in unison

"Did you hear that, Nanako?" Dojima chuckled

"Yep! Thank you!" Nanako smiled

* * *

"Thanks for everything today, Yu" Dojima smiled as the last of friends departed

"I'm glad to see your doing better..." Motoko nodded "Really glad..."

"Yeah, well...there wasn't much I could do by moping about in my bedroom" Yu sighed

"You know...you made some really great friends..." Dojima smiled

**SEPTEMBER 1/ YASO-IBANA HIGH**

"Mornin'" Chie greeted Yu at the school gates

"Good Morning" Yukiko greeted too

"Summer vacation's over already..." Chie sighed

"Yo, guys. I got lost on my way here." Yosuke chuckled as he appeared

"The vacation was pretty long." Yukiko noted

"Not THAT long. Sheesh…" Chie sighed as the four entered the school gates

And met a farmiliar face

"Good Morning..." He greeted

"Y-You…!? You're that, uh… pint-size detective!" Yosuke gaped

"I beg your pardon!?" He snapped "My name is Naoto. Please, don't give people bizarre nicknames you make up on the spot."

"Um…you know this is a high school, right?" Yukiko asked

"There are aspects of the case with which I remain unconvinced. There are some family-related issues as well, so I've decided to stay here for the present. From today forth, I'll be a first-year at your high school. And I felt that I should at least introduce myself to you all. I trust our relations will be cordial, Senpai." Naoto said before she departed "I assume you'll be attending the memorial of Ichijo-san?"

"Senpai…?" Chie questioned "That detective boy's…our underclassman?"

"He's right though..." Yu noted "Kou's memorial..."

...

"We'll find the guy who did this..." Yosuke said to him "I promise..."

**CLASSROOM**

"Welcome back Kiddies, I trust you're all a little older and wiser, hmm?" Kashiwagi smiled

"Well, she's still the same..." Yosuke sighed

"But it looks like we have a new transfer student, these foreigners are coming here like moths in the summer" Kashiwagi giggled before she picked up a file "Let's see...a transfer student from Greece? Exotic, and she had a condition that messes up her body temperature so she has to wear a jacket at all times...come on in"

"Dude..." Yosuke gulped as his, Yu's, Chie's and Yukiko's eyes shot opened as a figure walked into the classroom

"Well, introduce yourself" Kashiwagi insisted

"Hiya!" The girl smiled with a bow "I'm Labrys"

* * *

"I always wanted to go to school..." Labrys explained "I begged and begged Mitsuru-san to give me a chance, and she agreed, if only to make sure I might run into Minazuki...all I had to do was ask Adachi-san to sign the paperwork and lemme go..."

"Man..." Yosuke sighed with a rub of his head "Everything's gettin' so messed up..."

"I-I'm sorry..." Labrys apologized

"I didn't mean it that way. It's just…" Yosuke tried to explain

"Hey, we're stopping by Junes later, right? Why don't we ask Naoto-kun to join us?" Yukiko asked "Oh, I just thought…since he doesn't know anyone yet, he must feel lonely…"

"Didn't he say he came here to help out with the murder case?" Yosuke questioned "And if you think about it, that makes him a transfer student…just like us."

"Hello, Senpai!" Rise greeted as he joined the group

"Maybe he transferred here out of plain stubbornness. 'Cause he doesn't seem like he's only in it for fun." Yosuke sighed "Alright, let's see if he wants to hang out with us."

"A celebrity coming to school is already a surprise, but a detective is even rarer..." Chie noted "I'm a little curious to see what his family's like, too."

"There's that, and the fact that he's a detective at his age." Yukiko stated

"You guys are aware you're talking about unordinary students when you're standing right next to an Android, right?" Yu questioned

* * *

"There he is" Yosuke said as he spotted Naoto talking to two first year girls

"You dunno the area yet, right? C'mon, we'll show you around." One girl stated

"There's probably tons of places to hang out that only we'd know about." Her friend added

"That won't be necessary." Naoto said coldly "I'm not interested in _hanging out_, and neither am I interested in you two.""

"Huh? Hey, what did you say!?" One of them snapped

"What's with that attitude!? We're just trying to be friendly!" The other spat

"Geez…way to make an impression." Yosuke groaned before he ran up to them "Yo, Naoto-kun. How's it going?"

"Oh, um…" One of the girls gulped

"H-Hey guys. 'Sup?" Kanji greeted as he appeared before the group

"Uh, well, we'll be going now…" The girl said as they scampered

"So we meet again. May I help you?" Naoto questioned

"Hey, Naoto-kun. If you're not doing anything after school, wanna come with us?" Chie asked

"Come with…you mean me?" Naoto questioned "…Perhaps another time. I have some things to mull over."

"Things to mull over?" Rise questioned

"I must go straight home today. I promised my Grampa so." Naoto said

"_Grampa_…?" Kani questioned

"Oh well…that's that, then. Let's hang out some other time." Chie sighed

**SHIROGANE ESTATE**

"Naoto?" Came the call of the elderly man

"Come in Grandfather..." Naoto said as he entered

"My dear..." He said with a sigh

"Grandfather, I understand your concern" Naoto sighed as she put her file down "Going to the school so soon after a student's murder..."

"Naoto, I am sure you're aware that home schooling is still an option..." Her Grandfather nodded "Please reconsider..."

"Grandfather..." Naoto sighed once again "It matters not...I have already made my presences known to others, there will be talk if I drop out now...I can't let this investigation die"

"You say you've made your presence known?" Her Grandfather questioned

"Indeed" She nodded as she picked up the file once more "To...Satonaka-senpai, Hanamura, Amagi, Tatsumi, Narukami, La-"

"N-Narukami?"

...

"Indeed..." Naoto muttered, confused by her Grandfather's tone before she pulled out a photo from the file

"Oh god..." He said with wide eyes

"Hmm? Do you know him?" Naoto asked

"N-No...Forgive me, I must go..." Her Grandfather apologized before leaving the room

"Grandfather?" Naoto questioned

...

"No...can't be..." Naoto's grandfather mumbled to himself as he walked down the hall

**JUNES**

"Man, did you see Naoto's debut at the school? He sure blew it with that attitude" Yosuke sighed as the investigation team sat around the table "Is he gonna be okay at Yasogami?"

"He is different, but he has this…mysterious air around him that draws your attention." Yukiko stated

"Whoa, Yukiko, I never knew…you like younger guys?" Yosuke asked, causing the girl to blush

"No, that's not what I meant…" Yukiko muttered

"Naoto-kun said he has _things to mull over_" Chie recalled "But he's gotta be talking about the murder case."

"He's some ace detective, right?" Daisuke questioned

"He probably won't be satisfied until he solves this himself..." Labrys noted

"That's true… but…" Chie led on

...

"L-Let's talk about something else..." Yumi sighed "The Class Trip is coming up, right? Where are we heading?"

"Tatsumi Port Island" Yukiko revealed

"S-S-Seriously?" Labrys stuttered "That's where Mitsuru-san and the others went to school"

"Huh? Port Island? I did tons of shoots there. It's just beyond the Moonlight Bridge, yeah?" Rise asked "Should be lots of places to hang out there."

"Uh, actually…we may not have any time to goof off during this trip. I heard the school board is changing the trip's schedule this year." Chie stated "The idea is, we're gonna visit a private school there. Like, to have local and urban students interact or something. It'll be all about studying and serious business…yuck."

"Ugh…they're totally missing the point of a class trip." Rise groaned

"What kinda place is this private school?" Yosuke asked

"I heard it's really good. They have nice buildings and everything." Chie said "But it's closed on the day we're going there, so they're going the extra mile to make this work. They want us to tour some factories on the second day, and then we're coming back on the third day."

"That's not different from a social studies field trip!" Yosuke groaned "Urgh…I didn't want to know that…"

"Can't expect much from a school-sponsored trip, I guess." Kanji shrugged "Well...suppose we can just ditch it if it gets too lame"

"I'll show you guys around!" Rise smiled

"But we're in different years…" Yosuke noted

"Oh, didn't you know? The excursion will be like the campout. They're going to combine the first and second years." Yukiko stated "Since student enrollment is down and they're low on funds, they've cut the excursion back to once every two years."

"Well, at least we won't be bored with you around, Senpai." Kanji stated

"Gosh, I'm trying to remember the last time I went to Port Island and I wasn't working…" Rise chuckled "This'll be great!"

"I wish I could be that positive about it…doesn't this seem like a pain in the ass to anyone else?" Yosuke sighed

"Some people were against the proposition, but it's been decided. Oh, and guess who's idea it was? King Moron's." Chie groaned "It's just the kind of thing he'd come up with…"

"Nooo…King Moron…! Why must you torture us from beyond the grave…!?" Yosuke screamed

"Noooo… King Moron…!" Teddie cried as he ran up to the group

"You don't even know who that is." Kanji scoffed

"Hey, tell me more about this trip." Teddie urged on "Where is Port Island? What's there?"

"Get back to work, will ya?" Yosuke groaned

"Well, even though the class trip is coming up, it's still a ways away." Chie noted "What should I do until then…?"

"Well, it's not like we got much to do here in the first place…" Kanji sighed "Man is just an animal trying to figure out how to kill time through his days…"

...

"That was almost philosophical..." Chie noted "And yet, it made no sense..."

"S-Sorry..." Kanji muttered

**SEPTEMBER 2/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Well, here we are" Yu stated as he introduced Kanji into his room

"Sorry for bargin' in like this...I thought it'd be a good place..." Kanji said with a sigh "Oh, first though...

"Yeah?"

"There's one more thing I figured out..." Kanji said "Rise stopped by our store the other day...she said the dolls were cute, so I told her I made 'em. Then she said that was creepy..."

_"God fuckin damnit Rise" Yu cursed_

It kinda stung, but I kept on showing her the other stuff I made...and in the end, she said; _Maybe you're an amazing guy after all_." Kanji recalled "It pissed me off the way she said it, but that aside...I get it now...this is what he was talking about...I've just been throwin' in the towel all this time. Of course no one could understand me...I been keepin' my distance outta fear. So I decided that I'd do things my way, no matter how tough, but It ain't just about hanging out with guys who understand you and telling the rest to get bent...You gotta make an effort if you want people to understand you. I wasn't even trying. Not just about my hobby. But like, when the police suspected me, It didn't even cross my mind to try and tell 'em my story. I let 'em think whatever they want. And because of that, you, Ma, and that kid all got dragged into it. I didn't put in the slightest effort to try and make 'em understand... It's easier for me to act tough...I finally get it now...so from now on, I'm gonna live by two rules!

Rule #1: Be Myself!

Rule #2: Get people to understand me!"

"So...have you finally figured it out?" Yu asked "If you're...y'know...strange?"

"I have...and I finally realized that it ain't about that, it's just me being afraid..." Kanji nodded as the door creeped open "I'm not gay..."

...

"O-Oh..." Came a voice from the door

"M-Mom..." Yu gulped

"T-That must've sounded weird..." Kanji muttered before trying to explain

"N-No, not at all...keep on doing...whatever it is your were doing" Motoko gulped before she scattered away

...

"Oh great" Yu sighed

"You know...normally I would've freaked out" Kanji chuckled "But all I gotta do is explain and everything will be fine..."

"You're...that okay now, huh?" Yu questioned

"Yeah...this's me being me." Kanji smiled "And now I can say it straight out...that _other me_ is me."

_CLINK_

_**KANJI'S STRONG WILL THAT ALLOWED HIM TO ACCEPT AND OVERCOME HIS WEAKNESS HIS HEART'S TRUE POWER...KANJI'S PERSONA HAS BEEN REBORN! TAKE-MIKAZUCHI HAS TRANSFIGURED INTO ROKUTEN MAOH!**_

"This...ror reals...!?" Kanji gasped as he witnessed a vision of his new Persona "I get it...so I've become a little stronger, huh...?"

And then, with big smile on his face, he bowed to Yu

"You're my hero, dude...and my best bud!" Kanji said happily "So, as far as gettin' other people to understand me...today I'm holding the _Oven Mitt Puppets 101_ class, right here! Don't worry, even you can do it! It'll be reeeal cute! Believe me!"

Yu simply gulped in response

**SEPTEMBER 3/ SCHOOL HALLWAY**

"It appears you are known within my family..." Naoto stated

"Hmm? Oh, Naoto..." Yu noted

"My grandfather seemed knowledgeable of you" Naoto informed him

"Huh?" Yu questioned

"My grandfather seemed to recoil at the mere mention of your name..." Naoto revealed to him "Tell me, has any member of your family had any affiliation with mine?"

"N-Not that I know of, I mean I only just met you..." Yu said with a small shrug

"I see...I sense you're telling the truth" Naoto told him "Very well then..."

"That was...odd" Yu muttered as Naoto walked off

**SHIROGANE ESTATE**

"Grandfather?" Naoto questioned as he entered the office of her Grandfather

"Naoto?" He questioned as he quickly hid away something that was in his hand

...

"I take it that was the photo of Narukami-senpai that went missing from my file?" Naoto asked

"I..." He began to explain but simply let out a sigh and laid out the photo on the table "Yes..."

"Grandfather...who is he to you?" Naoto questioned him "How do you know him?"

"I do not..." He stated "I...I long ago had an affiliation with a relative of his...Yu-kun bares a striking resemblance to him"

"Is that all? What did this relative of his do?" Naoto continued to pursue "The blood seems to drain from your face whenever the mention of his name comes up"

"Naoto..." The Grandfather sighed "The name _Narukami _stirs up unpleasant memories for me...please...do not ask again"

"Gra-"

"Naoto, I understand that your natural instinct as a detective is to pursue this, but please..." He begged "Do not mention this again..."

...

"Very well..." Naoto muttered as he took the photo of Yu off the desk and left with it in her possession "Good Night..."

"Accursed Narukami's..." Naoto grandfather stated with a slight growl as he slumped back into his chair "How long must you interfere within my family?"

**SEPTEMBER 4/ ****CEMETERY**

"Despite everything that was said and done...you were my friend" Yu stated as he stood before Kou's tombstone "And I miss you..."

...

"Oh, it's you" Came a voice from behind him

"Hmm? Naoki?" Yu questioned as he turned around and spotted the boy. Second about to question him as to why he was here, he quickly realized he was likely here to see Saki's grave

"I heard about him...Kou Ichijo, was he a friend of yours?" Naoki questioned

"Yeah...he was" Yu nodded

"I see...I'm sorry" Naoki offered his condolences

"It's okay, I'm sure your loss even bigger" Yu told him "I lost a friend, you lost a family member..."

"No life has more value than any other...besides-" Naoki sighed "Saki...wasn't my sister"

"Huh?" Yu questioned "What're you-"

"Well...she was my half-sister" Naoki told him "My mother had an affair...I was born out of it and it wasn't discovered until later. Parents are divorced now...but...dad still treats me like I'm his"

"Are you serious?" Yu questioned

"Yeah...Dad remarried sometime back...nice girl, but I can't bring myself to call her Mom" Naoki stated

"I...didn't know that" Yu muttered "You know...I-"

"Huh? Yu?" Came the voice of Yosuke from behind them, witnessing the younger boy, he noted; "Hey...aren't you Saki-Senpai's...You two do kinda look alike. You have the same chin...the nose and eyes, too."

"Stop it..." Naoki muttered "My sister isn't here anymore."

"Lonely, huh...?" Yosuke questioned

"Shut up." Naoki demanded "Just stop it! What do you know about me!?"

"She told me she was proud of you. She boasted about you." Yosuke stated, stunning Naoki "I liked your sister."

"Past tense, huh?" Naoki scoffed

"I'm doing what I can right now for my sake...and your sister's." Yosuke told him "If you just sit there crying, you're just troubling her, y'know?"

"I'm not crying..." Naoki said quietly

"Tell you what...after I pay my respect to Kou, how about we all go grab some grilled steak from Junes?" Yosuke suggested

"In Junes...I couldn't" Naoki muttered "Saki worked there...I-"

"Don't run from it..." Yu told him

...

"Maybe...I gotta go see Saki's grave first" Naoki muttered before he departed

"So...he doesn't look like he's doing well..." Yosuke muttered as he walked up to Yu

"No..." Yu nodded "But...we'll help him..."

**SEPTEMBER 5/ SHADOW OPERATIVES BASE**

"So...what's the plan?" Akihiko asked

"Find Minazuki..." Mitsuru told him "Whatever it takes"

"We've been doing that for the last week..." Akihiko sighed "We've checked every roster there is..."

"Yes, but Katsuya managed to get a description of his appearance..." Mitsuru told him "Red hair, X-shaped scar on his face...I've given his description to every police force out there, if he shows his face, we'll now..."

"This is a dangerous guy...Kou Ichijo is dead...murdered in cold blood" Akihiko muttered "Just like Shinji..."

"Yes, it is like that..." Mitsuru quietly stated "I...I wished all of this had just stopped when we defeated Nyx..."

"I can't believe this..." Akihiko groaned "After all that crap, this shit still goes on...a kid is dead because of this bastard"

"I'm fustrated too, but there's not much we can do..." Mitsuru told him "For now, all we can do is place our trust in Katsuya and Labrys..."

**SEPTEMBER 6/ SAMEGAWA RIVER BANK**

"Enjoying it here?" Yu asked as the two sat under the roof covered patio, shielding them from the rain

"Yeah" Labrys nodded, clad in her feature hiding jacket "School's really fun...it's even betta than I imagined..."

...

"I wish I coulda helped

"Huh?" Yu questioned

"Ichijo-kun died 'cause of Minazuki...if I was there, I coulda stopped 'im, he couldn'ta threatened to kill me, I'mma android, coulda flattened him in an instant" Labrys said with a sigh

"I wish I coula have, but I didn't have Adachi-san's number..." Yu said sadly "If I had...then-"

"There ain't no point in blamin' yourself..." Labrys told him "We should jus' find Minazuki..."

"You're right..." Yu sighed "You're right..."

"Yu?" Came the faraway cry of his mother "What are you doing down there? It's pouring!"

"Oh, Mom?" Yu turned back "I was just showing a friend around town when the rain came pouring down..."

"Whossat?" Labrys asked as the woman approached them, shielding herself from the rain with her umbrella

"That's my mother" Yu told her "Just act natural..."

"Oh hello, I don't believe we've met" Motoko smiled as the silver haired girl

"Oh, hiya I'm Labrys" The girl bowed

"Interesting gloves you're wearing..." Motoko hummed as she observed Labrys metal hands "Oh wait, Labrys? Oh! I've heard of you, you're Adachi-san's cousin from...Greece, wasn't it?"

"Y-Y-Yeah" Labrys nodded

"My, there are a lot of Foreign Exchange students showing up" Motoko noted "But you two should be going...you both know it's not safe around here at night"

"Well yeah, but...rain" Yu pointed out

"Here" Motoko sighed as she pulled a spare umbrella out of her bag "I always carry a spare"

"Thanks Mom" Yu smiled as he accepted the Umbrella "Come on Labrys-san, I'll walk you home"

**SEPTEMBER 7/ PATH TO SCHOOL**

"Mornin' Senpai" Kanji waved as he and Yosuke caught up to Yu

"Yo." Yosuke greeted "So are you ready for the trip yet? This guy won't shut up about it."

"Yosuke-senpai hasn't even started packing. He's all like, _was that tomorrow?_ 'Sup with that?" Kanji shrugged

"You are way too excited about this. I mean, you're even worried about how many boxes of animal crackers to bring." Yosuke groaned "We're only gonna be there for two nights, dude Besides, I'm pretty sure they have convenience stores on Port Island."

"For serious!? I've never really left this place, so…" Kanji muttered "Huh…I wonder if the murders here got as much play over there, too."

"Well, I gotta admit, the news can be pretty out there." Yosuke sighed before he noted an approaching presence "Hey, it's Naoto. Yo, how's it going?"

"Good morn-" Naoto went to greet

"Oh yeah, I-I'm on duty today! Heheheh! W-Well, see ya later!" Kanji frantically stated before scampering away

"He's the messed up one…" Yosuke sighed

"You're not here to question me again, are you?" Yu asked

"No, per my grandfather's request, I've dropped everything related to that" Naoto stated with a tip of his hat

"What's this about?" Yosuke asked

"It's...nothing important" Yu told him "Come on, we're gonna be late"

* * *

"We haven't really talked in a while, have we?" Daisuke questioned

"No...not for a while" Yu confirmed

"I just want to put that period behind us...you and Satonaka being together was Kou's problem, not mine, and in the end, he was okay with you two..." Daisuke sighed "You and Satonaka can be as mushy as you want, it doesn't matter to me..."

"T-Thanks?" Yu muttered

"I'm...sorry for all the shit that was said" Daisuke apologized "Let's just put that all behind us..."

"Yeah..." Yu nodded before he held his hand out "Friends?"

"Friends" Daisuke smiled as he shook his hand

**SEPTEMBER 8/ TRAIN STATION**

"So...Tatsumi Port Island." Kanji muttered as the class made their way to their train "You guys know anything about it?"

"It's where Mitsuru-san and the others went to school, infact, I think we're heading to the same one..." Labrys noted

"Wait, what, we're heading to a school?!" Yosuke spluttered

"Well duh, this is a learning an expierence" Chie groaned "What? Did you think that they were just letting loose in the big city?"

"Oh man..." Yosuke grumbled

"Relax, Yosuke-senpai, I know all the good spots, I'll take you all somewhere" Rise smiled

"Should we visit the Shadow Operatives?" Yu asked

"Nah, they ain't stationed there no more" Labrys shrugged "They got office's in Tokyo now"

"Man, this whole trip just freakin' lame..." Yosuke groaned

**TATSUMI PORT ISLAND/ GEKKOKAN HIGH SCHOOL**

"Whoa, what's with this place?! It's way too big!" Yosuke gaped as the huge school before them

"Well, uh, next I will explain about our fine educational institution and the reasons for its establishment!" The Gekkokan Principal explained "Uh, I'd like to start with a proverb…_If a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well._"

"Is this principal in love with his own voice or what…?" Chie yawned

"Chie! He'll hear you!" Yukiko tried to hush her

"Ah-hem…our school is closed today, but, ahh, because of this rare opportunity for cultural exchange…" The Principal stated "Some of our students will walk you through these halls. First, though, a student body representative will say a few words…"

"Welcome to Gekkoukan High School." A young long haired girl with glasses standing beside the Principal greeted "My name is Chihiro Fushimi. I'm a third-year student, and the Student Council President here at Gekkoukan. It's an honor to meet you all today."

"Holy crap, that girl's unbelievable!" Yosuke gaped

"Yeah, you're right…she is cute…" Kanji gulped

"I gotta say… She's the most bewitching bespectacled beauty I've ever beheld…" Yosuke said in awe

"You guys…stop overreacting!" Chie groaned

"This is the first time our school has invited another student body for a true cultural exchange. To learn about others is to learn about oneself, and is the first step on the road to self-betterment… This I believe." Chihiro sated "To ensure a worthwhile experience for each and every one of you, we will do our best to help you accomplish that. So let us enjoy our time together! Thank you very much."

"She beat me in every catergory..." Chie muttered

"Alright everyone, get into groups with your classmates..." Kashiwagi commanded with a clap of her hands

"Oh no!" Chihiro gaped before she noticed Yu "Excuse me, could I bother you for a moment This is today's schedule for everyone. Could you hand it out later, please? I forgot to do it myself…sorry to be so disorganized. And you all came so far…"

"Don't worry" Yu smiled as Chihiro handed them to him

"Thank you." Chihiro smiled "In fact, I didn't write the speech on my own. One of the former Student Council Presidents helped me. She was the president, my first year here, and she was amazing…I always looked up to her. I should call her later and tell her the speech was a success! Oh, I'm sorry! Listen to me, going on and on about myself… I have to stop babbling when I got nervous. Um, your group is scheduled for a special lecture soon. The classroom is on the second floor. I have some arrangements to make with your student council, so please excuse me."

"Did I just hear her say _special lecture_?" Yosuke gaped "We came all this way to be lectured!?"

"Let's see, our class is…" Yukiko read "It's being taught by someone named Mr. Edogawa. The lecture's about Qabbalah…"

"Kabawhat?" Chie questioned

"You don't know? It's a casino." Kanji shrugged

"So...when's our free period?" Yosuke groaned

"Uhh… We don't get one." Chie muttered as she read the sheet "We have classes all through today. Tonight and tomorrow, we'll be staying at a hotel…We'll have free time tomorrow and the day after, until we leave at noon."

"You gotta be kidding me…" Yosuke groaned

"Come on, guys! Let's focus on our studies for now, so we can enjoy our free time later!" Yukiko cheered

**CLASSROOM**

"Welcome, nice to meet you all" The Teacher known as Edogawa greeted "My name is Edogawa, and I'll be keeping you company for this period. You are all from Yasogami High, eh…? Aaah, a high school of many gods. I had considered a lecture on Qabbalah philosophy…but I have a better idea. Eeeheehee…since I was able to meet you all today, let me all tell you about a man named H.P. Lovecraft...he was an American Writer and the creator of the Cthulhu Mythos, I trust you've at least heard of it, yeah? I'm gonna talk to you about one of his lesser known stories, Nyarlathotep...

He is described as a tall, swarthy man who resembles an ancient Egyptian pharaoh. In the self-titled story released in 1920, he wanders the earth, seemingly gathering legions of followers, the narrator of the story among them, through his demonstrations of strange and seemingly magical instruments. These followers lose awareness of the world around them, and through the narrator's increasingly unreliable accounts the reader gets an impression of the world's collapse. He appeared again in The Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath, in which he again manifests in the form of an Egyptian Pharaoh when he confronts protagonist Randolph Carter. He appears again in The Dreams in the Witch House from 1933, Nyarlathotep appears to Walter Gilman and witch Keziah Mason in the form of the 'Black Man' of the witch-cult, a black-skinned avatar of the Devil described by witch hunters. He shows up again in The Haunter of the Dark from 1936, the nocturnal, tentacled, bat-winged monster dwelling in the steeple of the Starry Wisdom sect's church is identified as another manifestation of Nyarlathotep. This avatar can not tolerate the slightest light.

Though Nyarlathotep appears as a character in only four stories and two sonnets, his name is mentioned frequently in other works. In The Whisperer in Darkness, the Mi-Go chant his name in reverential tones, describing him as a non-human entity who takes the form of a man. In The Shadow Out of Time, the _hideous secret of Nyarlathotep_ is revealed to the protagonist by Khephnes during their imprisonment by the Great Race of Yith.

Nyarlathotep came about from a nightmare Lovecraft had, he described it as _the most realistic and horrible nightmare I have experienced since the age of ten_. The poem reads;

_Nyarlathotep . . . the crawling chaos . . . I am the last . . . I will tell the audient void. . . ._

_I do not recall distinctly when it began, but it was months ago. The general tension was horrible. To a season of political and social upheaval was added a strange and brooding apprehension of hideous physical danger; a danger widespread and all-embracing, such a danger as may be imagined only in the most terrible phantasms of the night. I recall that the people went about with pale and worried faces, and whispered warnings and prophecies which no one dared consciously repeat or acknowledge to himself that he had heard. A sense of monstrous guilt was upon the land, and out of the abysses between the stars swept chill currents that made men shiver in dark and lonely places. There was a daemoniac alteration in the sequence of the seasons—the autumn heat lingered fearsomely, and everyone felt that the world and perhaps the universe had passed from the control of known gods or forces to that of gods or forces which were unknown._

_And it was then that Nyarlathotep came out of Egypt. Who he was, none could tell, but he was of the old native blood and looked like a Pharaoh. The fellahin knelt when they saw him, yet could not say why. He said he had risen up out of the blackness of twenty-seven centuries, and that he had heard messages from places not on this planet. Into the lands of civilisation came Nyarlathotep, swarthy, slender, and sinister, always buying strange instruments of glass and metal and combining them into instruments yet stranger. He spoke much of the sciences—of electricity and psychology—and gave exhibitions of power which sent his spectators away speechless, yet which swelled his fame to exceeding magnitude. Men advised one another to see Nyarlathotep, and shuddered. And where Nyarlathotep went, rest vanished; for the small hours were rent with the screams of nightmare. Never before had the screams of nightmare been such a public problem; now the wise men almost wished they could forbid sleep in the small hours, that the shrieks of cities might less horribly disturb the pale, pitying moon as it glimmered on green waters gliding under bridges, and old steeples crumbling against a sickly sky._

_I remember when Nyarlathotep came to my city—the great, the old, the terrible city of unnumbered crimes. My friend had told me of him, and of the impelling fascination and allurement of his revelations, and I burned with eagerness to explore his uttermost mysteries. My friend said they were horrible and impressive beyond my most fevered imaginings; that what was thrown on a screen in the darkened room prophesied things none but Nyarlathotep dared prophesy, and that in the sputter of his sparks there was taken from men that which had never been taken before yet which shewed only in the eyes. And I heard it hinted abroad that those who knew Nyarlathotep looked on sights which others saw not._

_It was in the hot autumn that I went through the night with the restless crowds to see Nyarlathotep; through the stifling night and up the endless stairs into the choking room. And shadowed on a screen, I saw hooded forms amidst ruins, and yellow evil faces peering from behind fallen monuments. And I saw the world battling against blackness; against the waves of destruction from ultimate space; whirling, churning; struggling around the dimming, cooling sun. Then the sparks played amazingly around the heads of the spectators, and hair stood up on end whilst shadows more grotesque than I can tell came out and squatted on the heads. And when I, who was colder and more scientific than the rest, mumbled a trembling protest about "imposture" and "static electricity", Nyarlathotep drave us all out, down the dizzy stairs into the damp, hot, deserted midnight streets. I screamed aloud that I was not afraid; that I never could be afraid; and others screamed with me for solace. We sware to one another that the city was exactly the same, and still alive; and when the electric lights began to fade we cursed the company over and over again, and laughed at the queer faces we made_

_I believe we felt something coming down from the greenish moon, for when we began to depend on its light we drifted into curious involuntary formations and seemed to know our destinations though we dared not think of them. Once we looked at the pavement and found the blocks loose and displaced by grass, with scarce a line of rusted metal to shew where the tramways had run. And again we saw a tram-car, lone, windowless, dilapidated, and almost on its side. When we gazed around the horizon, we could not find the third tower by the river, and noticed that the silhouette of the second tower was ragged at the top. Then we split up into narrow columns, each of which seemed drawn in a different direction. One disappeared in a narrow alley to the left, leaving only the echo of a shocking moan. Another filed down a weed-choked subway entrance, howling with a laughter that was mad. My own column was sucked toward the open country, and presently felt a chill which was not of the hot autumn; for as we stalked out on the dark moor, we beheld around us the hellish moon-glitter of evil snows. Trackless, inexplicable snows, swept asunder in one direction only, where lay a gulf all the blacker for its glittering walls. The column seemed very thin indeed as it plodded dreamily into the gulf. I lingered behind, for the black rift in the green-litten snow was frightful, and I thought I had heard the reverberations of a disquieting wail as my companions vanished; but my power to linger was slight. As if beckoned by those who had gone before, I half floated between the titanic snowdrifts, quivering and afraid, into the sightless vortex of the unimaginable._

_Screamingly sentient, dumbly delirious, only the gods that were can tell. A sickened, sensitive shadow writhing in hands that are not hands, and whirled blindly past ghastly midnights of rotting creation, corpses of dead worlds with sores that were cities, charnel winds that brush the pallid stars and make them flicker low. Beyond the worlds vague ghosts of monstrous things; half-seen columns of unsanctified temples that rest on nameless rocks beneath space and reach up to dizzy vacua above the spheres of light and darkness. And through this revolting graveyard of the universe the muffled, maddening beating of drums, and thin, monotonous whine of blasphemous flutes from inconceivable, unlighted chambers beyond Time; the detestable pounding and piping whereunto dance slowly, awkwardly, and absurdly the gigantic, tenebrous ultimate gods—the blind, voiceless, mindless gargoyles whose soul is Nyarlathotep.."_

_**RIIIING**_

"Oh, is our time up?" Edogawa questioned the bell "Guess I went on a little too long, eheheh..."

**SHIRAKAWA BOULEVARD**

"Alrighty, here we are, the Seaside Clamshell Inn!" Kashiwagi introduced "We'll be staying here tonight."

"Is this…really a regular hotel…?" A female student questioned

"So what do you think? It was me who found this place." Kashiwagi smiled "It just opened not too long ago. It's got that modern look-and the price was right! Personally, I think it was an excellent choice."

"We're staying here…?" Daisuke asked

"I mean the sign says _hotel_, but…" A student noted

"It opened recently…? Dude, this totally looks like a lov-"

"You there! Don't just stand there! Keep marching in." Kashiwagi commanded

"Isn't there something funny about this place…?" Yosuke questioned

"Is there? We don't have these modern hotels in Inaba, so I can't tell." Chie shrugged

"Uh...this place is Shirakawa Boulevard..." Rise blushed with a giggle "And it's-"

"Th-That's all right, Rise. I don't think I wanna know…" Yosuke interrupted

_"Hmhmhm…Faster than I expected.."_

"Wha-What was that?" Yosuke questioned the strange voice

_"This is quite the hotel. If they were to meet me… I wonder, what would the look on Yosuke's face be…?"_

"Who's that!?" Yosuke shouted as they spotted a figure on a nearby rooftop

"Up there!" Labrys cried "Hey...ain't that-"

"HAA!" The figure roared as it leapt off the roof and infront of them "Sho bee dooby doo!"

"Teddie!?" The group called in unison

"What're you doing here!?" Kanji spat

"There lonely bear inside of me went stir crazy!" Teddie cried

"Grrr…If only I could detect people in the real world…" Rise grumbled

"How did you come here!? Do you have some special ability!?" Chie asked

"No, I took the train." Teddie shrugged "I swore off Topsicles and saved up the money I got working at Junes. I knew where you were going, thanks to Yosuke's _Trip Guide._ You guys have free time tomorrow, right? No use hiding it! I already know!"

"How in the world did you make it here looking like that…?" Yosuke asked "I mean, why wear the bear suit here!?"

"I almost got thrown in the trash a couple times." Teddie sighed "But I kept hanging onto the promise Chie-chan made to go on a date with me! That's what gave me strength to carry on!

"Uh, g-good job, Teddie…" Chie muttered much to Yu's shock "D-Did I promise that…? Oh yeah…I do remember saying that I'd go out with you someday…"

"I'd never thought I'd say this but I'm gonna curb stomp that bear..." Yu growled

"You remembered, Chie-chan! Is it okay with Yuki-chan and Rise-chan too!?" Teddie cried

"Let's all go together, then. Is that all right with you?" Yukiko asked

"Mmm…It's a deal!" Teddie nodded

"I've been here before, so I'll show you around tomorrow. I guess we can go shopping first. And I know a great place we can hit later on." Rise smiled

"Ooh, shopping. That sounds great!" Teddie chuckled

"The other students don't know Port Island that well, so they're just gonna go wherever the school recommends." Chie noted

"Well, I guess a shopping spree beats a factory tour. Alright, we're in too." Yosuke shrugged

"Leave it to me." Rise giggled

"Now…before the fun starts…we gotta deal with this guy." Yosuke sighed

"Can't you sleep outside for the night? That suit should keep ya nice and cozy." Kanji suggested

"Cruelty to animals! You don't know how much trouble I went through to get here!" Teddie shouted "I took the slow train all this way! Do you hear!? The slow train!"

"Now now, you kids aren't bickering about your room allocations, are you?" Kashiwagi asked as she stepped outside

"Crap…!" Chie cursed

"What's the matter?…Oh? What's this giant teddy bear?" Kashiwagi asked

"A-A souvenir." Yu stated as he ran over and picked it up, Teddie doing his absolute best to keep still

"My…It's so big…" Kashiwagi giggled "Go oh, hurry on inside with it. By the way, these rooms are amazing. Every room has a waterbed! But don't flip the wrong switch when you're turning on the lights, or your bed will start spinning."

"A-Anyways, I'm looking forward to tomorrow…" Chie said

"Yeah, but I'm exhausted…for so many reasons…" Yosuke groaned

...

"I gotta pee" Teddie muttered

**SEPTEMBER 9/ CLUB ESCAPADE**

_"I WILL BURN MY DREEEEEEEEEEADDDD"_

"Whoa! So this is a club?" Kanji questioned as the group stepped in

"Hang on, I know this song..." Yu noted "It's...Burn my...bread? No hang on, that's not it..."

"Man, what is this place?" Labrys questioned "I' never seen anything like it..."

"Never even seen a nightclub before..." Daisuke hummed

"Whoo! I'm totally ready for this!" Chie cheered

"There's nothing like this back home…" Yukiko noted as the group made their way to the stairs on the second level, only to be greeted by a farmiliar face

"Is it permitted for high school students such as yourself to be here?" Naoto questioned

"Wh-What!? Dude, look who's talking! You were here before we were!" Yosuke spat "Hey, that's right…I guess if the first-years came on the trip, you'd be here too…"

"The clientele here seems above-board, so I don't expect there'll be any problems." Naoto stated before passing by them

"Huh? You're leaving?" Chie asked

"Why don't you join us?" Yukiko suggested

"Are you…asking me to stay?" Naoto questioned

"Uh-huh. We didn't get to chat last time." Yukiko nodded

"Ah…I…I-It's just that I had some matters to attend to that day." Naoto admitted

"Well, you're free now, right?" Rise asked "I was really eager to talk to you. I'm curious how someone my age is working as a detective."

"How about it?" Yukiko asked

"Hmmm…very well, if you insist." Naoto muttered

"Huh? What's up? You look a little red…" Yosuke noted

"Th-That's not true!" Naoto blushed

"Wait here. I'll go reserve the area upstairs for us." Rise stated as she scampered up the stairs

"Okay…Wait, what!? Reserve!?" Yosuke spluttered

"Yep. Don't worry, I think I can pull some strings." Rise giggled

"What's wrong, man? Stomach pains?" Yosuke questioned Kanji's sour expression

"Th-That ain't it." Kanji muttered

* * *

"Are you sure this is all right? Isn't it expensive…?" Chie questioned as the group sat alone on the second floor

"No worries. Two years ago when I had a secret show here, the power went out in the middle of it, and the gig was cancelled." Rise revealed "They still owe me from then, so they're willing to put this one on the house."

"Well in that case, I'm gonna order more." Chie laughed

"Whooooo! I'm not gonna hold back either!" Teddie cheered as he practically inhaled his drink

"Dude…you sound even weirder today…" Kanji noted

"Awww, you're sho cold, Kanji…" Teddie slurred "Hm…Kanji? Kanji, Kanji… I Kanj-ecture that shomething's up! Heeheehee, that's a great one!"

"Man, you're already in high gear…" Yosuke groaned

"Kanj-ecture…snrk…bwahahaha!" Yukiko burst out laughing

"She's looser'n usual too…" Kanji noted

"Hey, wait a sec!" Yosuke cried as he sniffed his drink "Are these liquor…!?"

"I-I told 'em to give us soft drinks! They're non-alcholic!" Rise slurred as he face was completely red "Honest!"

"Aw, sheesh…I was wondering why it's so hot…" Chie sighed as she tugged on her jacket collar

"Alchohol?" Labrys questioned "What's that?"

"Is this seriously booze? But the smell's-" Kanji muttered

"King's Gaaaaaaame!" Rise cried out "Times like this, adults play the King's Game. It's the law…What's their problem…? They make me act like a ditz, call me Risette and stuff, and then say I'm a kid…It's so obvious…those wrap parties get a lot funner after I go home Morooons! I'm gonna play the King's Game now and ain't no one gonna stop me!"

"Yet another side of Rise exposed…I wonder if she knows what she's saying…" Yosuke sighed

"Kanjiiii! Get the chopsticks ready!" Rise demanded

"Wha-!? Why me…?" Kanji spluttered

"The King's word is law! Chop-chop!" Rise demanded

"Here..." Yu stated as he knelt down and presented Rise with a bunch of chopsticks, his cheeks glazed red

"Oh not you too!" Yosuke yelped

"You're so sweet!" Rise smiled

"Hey, back off!" Chie snapped

"U-Um…What's this King's Game again?" Daisuke questioned

"Okay, one chopstick makes the king if you draw it, and the others have numbers on them" Yukiko drunkingly explained "The King picks a number and says what that person has to do.

But who has which number is a secret until the King gives the orders!"

"Senpai, you're such an adult! You tell 'em!" Rise said affectionately

"Y-Yukiko!? Where'd you learn this stuff!?" Chie yelped

"C'mon, everyone draw!" Rise commanded as everyone did just that "kay, sooooo…who's the King?"

"Teddie's is red! Red! Is Teddie the King!?" The blond boy cried

"Ugh, we're already doomed from the get-go…" Yosuke groaned

"I, the King, command thee to smooch the King without delay!" Teddie commanded "Smoooooooch!"

"S-S-S-Smooch!?" Chie screamed

"Please God…grant me a girl! Number 3!" Teddie shouted

"Gyaaaah!" Kanji cried

"Oooh, tough break..." Daisuke muttered

"I meant Number 2…" Teddie corrected

"No take-backs!" Yosuke shouted

"Smooch, smooooch!" Yukiko cheered

"K-Kanji…so you were after my fuzzy fur!" Teddie smiled mischeviously "Okay, but it's my first time! Be gentle…!"

"Whoa! Ow, quit that! Don't make me flatten you, dammit!" Kanji cried as Teddie tackled him "Aaaagh! Noooo! Heeeelp!"

"Ohooo…only the first round, and two contestants have dropped out already." Rise giggled

"Huh? Is it that kind of game?" Chie questioned

"On to round two!" Rise shouted as they drew chopsticks once more "Who's the King?"

"Right here..." Yu stated as he held the chopstick up

"Phew, someone decent…no crazy orders this time…" Chie sighed in relief

"That's not how it goes! If the last King demanded a smooch, then the next order's gotta be more extreme." Yukiko laughed "Chiiieee, don't be such a party pooper…ahahahaha!"

"Heyyy! The person who gets picked should have to rest their head on the King's lap." Rise suggested

"Nah, make 'em sit on his lap." Yukiko added

"Oh! Or they could have to hug him!" Rise tagged on

"Better than that…a piggyback ride!" Yukiko called

"C'mon, King! Who's gonna do what!?" Rise shouted

"Number 2..." He muttered as he unbuttoned his shirt "My lap...is yours..."

...

"Yeah...Number 2 is me..." Chie blushed

"Oh lame...you two are boyfriend and girlfriend" Yosuke groaned "You've done way more than this..."

"N-N-N-No we haven't!" Chie shouted

"Sit! Sit! Sit!" Yukiko and Rise cheered

"Fine!" Chie groaned as she ran over and plopped herself on Yu's lap "There! You happ-"

"Ah!" Yu yelped

"Wha?" Chie questioned before she realized she had essentially jumped onto Yu's...personal area "Oh god, sorry!"

"Oh dude, critical hit to the nads!" Yosuke yelped as Chie got off the silver haired boy as he curled up into a ball "Dude! Worst Girlfriend! 0/10!"

"S-Shut up!" Chie snapped as Yu fell off the couch, banging his head against the table "Oh god!"

"Dude, he's out..." Daisuke noted

"Me next! I'm the King!...Queen!" Yukiko slurred

"You didn't even draw a chopstick!" Yosuke snapped

"Alright, then…let's have someone talk about something really embarrassing that they'd never wanna tell anyone!" Yukiko giggled "Hrmmm, let's see…ah! Naoto-kun! I choose you!"

"She's breaking all the rules…" Yosuke sighed "Just ignore her, Naoto"

"No…No, that won't be necessary." Naoto said with a shake of his head "One stipulation, though: If I do this, the rest of you must reveal _something_ as well."

"Okaaay!" Yukiko said happily

"No particularly embarrassing experiences come to mind…" Naoto noted "Would discussing my life be fair game? It's the rare situation like this that gives me call to speak of such things."

"Damn…way to kill the mood…" Yosuke groaned

"The Shirogane family has been detectives for generations now. We lend our powers to the police from time to time." Naoto stated

"For generations? Wow, it's like that guy I read about once. What was his name…Raidou...Kuzu…noha?"

"Huh? My Grandfather?" Yu questioned as he regained consciousness

"W-W-Whoa wait, your grandfather is _the _Raidou Kuzunoha?!" Yosuke yelped "Dude, he-"

"As I was saying...In days gone by, when there were no crime scene investigators, consulting detectives were considered more valuable." Naoto revealed "Thus, my grandfather still has a strong connection with the police and looks after me, despite my youth and inexperience.

But investigators nowadays are well versed in science and medicine, so I must further my studies."

"That sounds tough…" Yosuke muttered before realizing that was the end of the story "That's it? No punchline?"

"I fear you may be looking to the wrong person for that..." Naoto stated

"That's sooo embarrassing! Isn't Naoto-kun embarrassing?" Yukiko laughed

"I wanna go home…" Yosuke groaned

"Phew…I'm sleepy." Rise yawned

"Well then, it's your turn now." Naoto noted "A straight answer, please. What is your true involvement with the murder case?"

"You know, you're so good at killing the mood that it's almost funny…" Yosuke yelped

"Weeeeell, we go rescuing people who've been kidnapped by jumping into the TV!" Yukiko slurred, almost causing everyone to brown their pants "And then we say stuff like..._My stand will be the one to judge you! _and go ORAORAORAORAORAORAO-Wait...hahahahaha! That's not it! We do stuff like, _Persona_! with our Personas and beat the crap outta Shadows…"

"Y-You idiot…" Yosuke spat

"Are you making fun of me?" Naoto groaned

"Ish true! THE WORLD-I mean, PERSONA!...Personaaaa!" Rise giggled "They're the same thing! How have we not been sued over this?!"

"Sheesh! Somebody put these two drunks to bed already!" Chie groaned

"I see now that you had no intention of telling me the truth." Naoto sighed "But I'm curious...how did you become to inebriated? This isn't alcohol"

"Good one, Naoto!" Yukiko laughed

"No, I confirmed it when I first entered. No alcohol has been served here since a rash of drunk driving last year." Naoto revealed

"Huh…? Does that mean we're all just drunk off the atmosphere?" Chie questioned

"Whooo caaares…" Yukiko groaned "Whee, I feel so good…goood niiiiight…"

"Yu-kun, you feeling alright?!" Labrys questioned as Yu stumbled over his feet

"I AM THE BROTAGONIST! I-" He went tyrade before falling over and smashing head-first into the table, again

"Oh god!" Chie screamed

"I can see a light..." Yu muttered "Grandpa Raidou, is that you? Have I made you proud?!"

_"THIS FLOOR IS COARSE AND ROUGH, NOT LIKE YOU!" The vision of Raidou shouted_

...

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS!" Yu sobbed

"What the hell is going on here?!" Yosuke yelled

"Hey, Senpai!…How the hell're we gonna get back with two passed-out drunks!?" Kanji growled as he finally threw Teddie off him

"All this is giving me a big headache…is this what a hangover feels like…?" Yosuke groaned as he rubbed his temples

"Teddie's still totally okay!" The blond boy shouted as he slung his arm over Kanji's shoulder "Lesh keep drinking 'til mornin'!"

"Bring it **OOOONNNNNNNNNNNN!**" Rise roared

"As I said…you haven't been drinking alcohol!" Naoto shouted "Are you all idiots?!"

"Grandpa no, I don't wanna go to America! They'll change my skin color, call me Mark and make me dance crazy!" Yu screamed in his sleep

"Let's go back to the hotel..." Yosuke sighed

**SEPTEMBER 10/ HAGAKURE RAMEN**

"MMM! Oh man! This is really something!" Chie hummed happily

"This place serves the best ramen in town." Rise stated "When we were filming, a lot of times I came here instead of eating boxed lunches. Huh…? You're not hungry Yukiko-senpai?"

"Um… What happened last night…? I don't remember much about it…" Yukiko mumbled

"Oh, I think the two of us fell asleep quick. I heard it got pretty wild, though." Rise said

"I see…I don't remember at all" Yukiko noted

"My head..." Yu groaned "It's like I got hit with chair"

"Oooh, so close" Yosuke noted

"Ahh, this flavor never changes." Rise said happily "I couldn't come here too often because it's high in carbohydrates, so being able to eat as much as I want is like a dream!"

"Oh…this is delicious! It has an interesting taste that makes you hungry for more." Yukiko said happily as she finally began to eat

"See? See?" Rise giggled

"Another bowl, please! Keep the noodles hard!" Teddie called

"Um, I'll have the Hagakure Bowl." A young man who entered the store ordered

"The Hagakure Bowl's a normal menu item now…!? Argh, I should've asked!" Rise groaned "Oh well. This is just as good."

"Hey, is it okay for you to be out in the open like this?" Yosuke asked

"Sure" Rise nodded "See those signing boards? My autograph's up there too, but the cook doesn't give me a second glance. That's just how it is over here. Plus, I'm barely wearing any makeup."

"Oh, you're right. There's a lot of autographs on display." Yukiko noted

"Y'know what I think? The reason they don't notice you is 'cause this bear sticks out like a sore thumb…" Chie groaned "I guess if he wore that over here, he'll have to go home wearing it…"

"Isn't it all steamy inside from the ramen?" Kanji questioned

"Huh? Where's my bowl!?" Yukiko cried out as he ramen had vanished, she then noticed an empty bowl next to Teddie "You didn't eat it…did you?"

"Y-You didn't finish, so… Ahaha." Teddie chuckled

"I was going to finish it!" She snapped

"Hey, didn't you just order more a second ago? How many have you eaten?" Yosuke asked

"I dunno how to count." Was Teddie's simply reply

"You little liar! Gimme that check! Let's see here…" Yosuke read before his gut dropped "One, two…T-Ten bowls!?"

"Yuki-chan's makes it eleven." Teddie burped

"I was going to finish mine…" Yukiko pouted

"Th-There, there…" Chie said as she patted her friend on the back

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but it's close to the meeting time." Naoto informed the group

"Awww…already? I thought the trip was gonna be a bore…but now that it's over, I actually had a good time." Chie smiled "Hey, let's buy a souvenir at the station. I bet Nanako-chan will be expecting one."

"Sure, I'll buy her a shirt or something..." Yu stated before he began to arise, clutching his head half-way through "Damn it, my head...what happened last night?"

"Alright, let's get going. C'mon Teddie, we're leaving." Yosuke sighed but the bear didn't respond "Yo…Hey, Ted!"

"Don't make me rub your fur the wrong way, you little-" Kanji began to growl before he noted something "D-Dude…hey, he ain't moving! I-Is he hibernating!?"

"Hey…" Chie gasped "D-Don't tell me…I-It's not because he's been in our world too long, is it!?"

"Are you serious!? Teddie!" Rise cried out

...

"My tummy feels heavy..." Teddie groaned

"Leave it behind." Yukiko stated

"I ate too much…can't move…someone carry meee." Teddie pleaded

"Well maybe you shouldn't of eaten _eleven damn bowls_ of Ramen..." Daisuke groaned

"I mustn't be late for our rendezvous. Please excuse me." Naoto stated as he left

"Ah, Yukiko. Wait for me." Chie asked as the two left

"H-Hey, I really can't move! And I don't have money for a return ticket!" Teddie yelped

"Farewell, Teddie…" Yosuke said as he prayed before him "We shall leave you here, along with our memories of youth…"

"Farewell" Yu and Kanji bowed in unison

"See ya" Labrys waved

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Welcome home!" Nanako greeted "Did you have fun?"

"Sure did" Yu nodded "You should come with me next time."

"Yep, for sure! Um, I wanna go to Destiny Sea too! There's this roller coaster that goes WHOOOSH into the water, and…" Nanako began to list before Yu handed her a bag "A souvenir?! Wow! Thanks!"

"I'm home" Dojima called out

"Oh, hi Dad!" Nanako greeted

"Ah, you're back. We just missed each other, huh?" Dojima said to Yu

"Look! My big bro got me a souvenir!" Nanako smiled

"Hey, nice. Did you remember to thank him?" Dojima asked

"Of course!" Nanako nodded

"Heh, I guess that came out of your own pocket. Thanks." Dojima thanked Yu "You went to Tatsumi Port Island, yeah? Haha, I guess the city was no big deal for a guy like you. By the way, it the first-years went along with you, Naoto Shirogane must've been there too..."

"Yeah...talked to him a few times" Yu nodded

"He's mature for his age, but he's still a year younger than you…yry to make friends with him, will you? He's a cocky brat…but he's honest." Dojima sighed "The higher-ups are losing their patience with him… It doesn't matter if his argument holds water or not. At this rate, he won't accomplish anything but getting himself booted off the team…adults can be a selfish bunch.

...

"Oh, sorry. You must be tired. Why don't you take a bath? Oh, but don't forget to take your stuff upstairs. Nanako! Can you get the bath ready!?"

**SEPTEMBER 11/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"I placed lots of special orders. Come with me next time when I go pick 'em up, Senpai.

I had tons of fun today. Not many people tried to come up and talk…Maybe they already forgot who I , yeah. Want some tofu to take home? I helped make them today. Wait right here." Rise stated as he ran back into the store

"Excuse me…Yu-san, is it?" Came a voice from behind him, turning his head around, he saw Inoue, Rise's manager "Ummm…sorry about the other day…I'm Minoru Inoue, Rise Kujikawa's former manager. I'm sorry to bother you, but… Could you give this to her? A fan letter came, you see…"

"I have no problem in handing this to her, but I want to know what your deal is..." Yu asked as Inoue handed him the letter

"I'm one of her fans myself. Her talent is captivating…Rise always looked forward to this girl's letters, so I…In today's cult of personality, being popular carries its own schedule fits together, minute by minute, like a jigsaw puzzle…every day you're squeezed utterly dry…" Inoue sighed "But even knowing that, I still want her to come back…she was genuinely brilliant…not only that, but she's strong enough to use her pain as a foundation.

From what I could see… she's relying on you. So could you…?

"Sorry, Senpai, but we're all sold out…" Rise sighed as she stepped outside, witnessing the man with Yu "Inoue-san!? Quit pestering me! Wait…what did you say to Senpai!?

"I-I'm sorry. I'm leaving now…goodbye…" he apologized before he left

"Hounding me even after I quit…he's practically a stalker! To think I trusted him…I feel betrayed!" Rise growled

"I think he's actually worried about you..." Yu told her "No…he just wants Risette back. The _me_ he created…so…what did he come for?"

"To give you this..." Yu stated as he handed her the letter

"This letter…she wrote again…I see… But he came all the way out here for this…?" Rise sighed before noticing Yu's confusion "This girl is a middle school student. She writes to me all the time. I did this public service campaign once to stamp out bullying…

She said it inspired her…she wrote that she wouldn't let bullies get her down, that she'd try to make friends…ever since then, she wrote me letters…_This happened to me today, I was able to say this, _stuff like that. _Seeing Risette work hard encourages me, It makes me feel like I can still hang in there…_Haha, she doesn't really know how it works, huh? But still, every time I read her letters, I felt like Risette actually meant something…so whenever things got tough, I would read them over and over…Senpai…do you still have some free time…?"

**TATSUHIME SHRINE**

"So...she's worried about me" Rise sighed as the two sat on the steps infront of the shrine "Officially, I'm taking a break due to illness, so…before I quit, there was talk about a part in a movie…bhe sounds like she was really looking forward to it…_Please get well soon and come back, _she says… I'm so glad you were here. I was scared to read it alone…I gave up being Risette. I can't meet her expectations…"

"Having second thoughts?" Yu asked

"I have no regrets." She said with a shake of her head "At least, I think not. I mean, it was such a relief to quit. To go back to being the real me…Haha…"

...

"Anyway, Risette doesn't exist anymore" Rise sighed. "It's not just this girl. I disappointed lots of other people…the president of the company told me that over and over, and I knew already…I knew this was the path I chose, but…Maybe I'll just inherit the tofu shop!

I'm the shop's main attraction now. I bet I could make it thrive!…Senpai. Maybe we should really just do it…y'know, what I was saying a while back. You could marry me once we graduate high school, and the two of us could work at the tofu shop together. Doesn't that sound fun? H-How about it? Haha… ha…"

"Sorry Rise...if I'm marrying anyone, it'll be Chie" Yu sighed

"Heh...I know...you don't look at that me that way" Rise said with a somewhat sad laugh "But thanks...I'm fine now"

**SEPTEMBER 12/ SCHOOL**

"I hope you all enjoyed the school trip" Kashiwagi smiled "Don't you all feel just a bit more mature now that you've visited an urban area like that? Oh, by the way…that cute bear that Yu-kun had on the trip…where'd you get that? I get soooo tempted by animals with such unique design. Speaking of bears, some species feed on salmon. And speaking of salmon, I have an interesting fact for you. They're actually a white fish. That orangish color actually comes from the pigment of the shellfish. Salmon roe is also affected by the shellfish. Hence, a salmon's color is affected by its environment. The same thing goes for girls. I hope the city brought you ladies that much closer to becoming women."

...

"I just tuned out, what did she say?" Yosuke asked

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

_"Good evening, and welcome to Niteline's special Nitewatch report" The announcers voice rang "A suspect in the murders in Inaba was safely arrested recently. But what few people know is that the mastermind who brought him to justice was a high school detective._

_Tonight's report will focus on this Detective Prince, Naoto Shirogane, whose handsome looks are sweeping the nation. Thanks for being on the show."_

_"No, no, the pleasure is all mine."_

"Naoto..." Yu muttered

"Oh, his uniform is the same as yours." Nanako noted

_"First, congratulations to you and the police for your recent identification of the culprit as Sho Minazuki. It was well-known that there were a lot of mysteries surrounding this case, and you did a great job clearing them up." The Announcer priased_

_"I'd hesitate to say that the matter is _cleared up, _as such." Naoto corrected "It's true that our suspect was behind Kou Ichijo's unfortunate when I cast my eye over the case as a whole, I detect a few things that seem out of place."_

_"Oh…like what?"_

_"Unfortunately, I cannot divulge details at this time." Naoto sighed "But this matter claimed the lives of six people. Hence, I believe even the smallest inconsistency must be investigated."_

_"I… I see. I have to say, this is a surprise in light of the police's official statement. N-Now for our next segment, _The Detective Prince's True Identity_, where Naoto-kun tells us a little bit about himself. Amazingly, the Detective Prince has solved a whopping 24 cases. 16 of them were…"_

"Something about that boy seems awfully farmiliar..." Motoko noted

**GAS STATION**

"Great..." Sho sighed as he observed the program "Give away my name on National TV you fucking-"

"Well, it can't be helped" The Attendant sighed "It's an unfortunate side-effect...but worry not, soon, we will have to hide no longer..."

_CREEK_

"Ah there you are..." The Attendant Greeted "I'm glad to see you've accepted her offer..."

...

"I understand" The man muttered

"Don't give for..._him_, just yet" The Attendant chuckled "Wait until they appear on the Midnight Channel"

"I understand..." He nodded once more

"Very well then...now leave" The Attendant demanded as the man left

"This is almost laughably evil" Sho chuckled

"Yes...almost" The Attendant laughed

**SEPTEMBER 13/ PATH TO SCHOOL**

"Senpai!" Rise greeted Yu

"Yo." Yosuke greeted

"Hey, did you see the show on TV last night? Naoto-kun was on!" Chie stated

"That thing about the Detective Prince solving the case? C'mon, we're the ones who identified him." Yosuke groaned

"Yes, but we informed the police" Yukiko sighed "So since they have the information, it's true he helped solve the case."

"I'm kinda surprised, though. I didn't think he was the type to go after the spotlight like that." Chie noted, and speak of the devil...

"Good morning." Naoto greeted "I've been waiting for you all. There's something I needed to discuss with you regarding the case."

"Discuss? Dude, we'll be late if we talk too long…hey, where's your uniform?" Yosuke questioned Naoto's blue shirt instead of the regular uniform

"Could you please indulge my current theory on the matter?" Naoto asked

"What is it…?" Yu questioned

"First, as regards commonalities between the victims, all of them were kidnapped before they were murdered. The victims were all locals who had been the focus of recent media attention, becoming suddenly well-known…That is the most likely scenario. I don't believe there's anything intrinsically unique about the victims themselves...haven't you all come to the same conclusion?" Naoto asked

...

"Yeah" Yu nodded

"Then, allow me to state my point. Will you admit that a number of you fit these identical circumstances?" Naoto asked "There have been long intervals between the deaths in this case. But after I applied the aforementioned criteria, I discovered several similar disappearances had taken place. Yukiko Amagi. Daisuke Nagase, Kanji Tatsumi. Rise Kujikawa. All of you disappeared shortly after being shown on TV…either you escaped death somehow, or you faked your own disappearances in order to divert attention from yourselves…since some of you had ties to the victims, there came a point where I suspected one of you must be the culprit."

"You thought one of us was the killer!? You can't be serious!" Chie yelled

"This was a prior theory, since discarded." Naoto confided "Putting together everything I've learned until this moment, I believe exactly the opposite. You aren't the culprits. You may, in fact, be the only ones with the means to pursue the true perpetrator…seen as a joining of forces between the rescued, everything falls into place…of course, this is all speculation.

There is in fact a flaw in the theory. It doesn't account for the several incident…Mr. Morooka's, Mitsuo Kubo's and Kou Ichijo's murder...they has never been broadcast on television, and neither did he ever disappear. We must also consider the condition of their corpse, the first three victims are still listed with an unknown cause of death…but Mr. Morooka died of an easily identifiable blunt force trauma to the occipital cranium. And a child could identify that Mitsuo Kubo and Kou Ichijo died of blood loss from stab wounds...the police have not satisfactory resolved this discrepency, yet there are desperate to close the case. Further action will be necessary to obtain some sort of decisive evidence."

"Further action…? What do you mean?" Chie questioned

"Well, whatever the outcome…the evidence should come to light." Naoto sighed "You said something interesting to me not long ago."

"Hey, where are you going?" Yosuke asked the young man began to depart

"This is not a game for me either…" Naoto muttered

"Naoto-kun…?" Yukiko questioned

**SEPTEMBER 14/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

_"Hey, did you see that show on TV? The one about the Detective Prince's secret identity Naoto-kun is so cool!"_

_"Yeah, he really does have it goin' on, doesn't he…? He's really young to be a detective, too!_

_He's cute, but he has this aura of mystery about him…that's cool, too!"_

_"You think he'll be at school today!?"_

"Man, all this talk about Naoto..." Yu muttered "Wait...if he showed up on TV...and

...

Shit..."

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"So...I should watch this Midnight Channel thing?" Adachi questioned

"Yeah, it's how we've all been able to find out who's been kidnapped so far" Yu nodded

"Fair enough" Adachi sighed "Sorry, I gotta head back to the station"

"It's okay, thanks for listening" Yu nodded

**POLICE STATION**

"Finally..." Dojima sighed as he was handed a report

"What's that?" Adachi asked

"The finger print results from that knife found at the crime scene..." Dojima sighed "Everyone's been so busy that I could only get it done today...

"Let's see...Kou Ichijo's prints, Unknown set, probably Minazuki...and...wait, what?"

"What is it?" Adachi questioned

"A third set of prints..." Dojima read "Belonging to...Kanji Tatsumi?"

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE/ MIDNIGHT**

"Damn..." Yu muttered as the Midnight Channel appeared onscreen, a fuzzy image with silhoutte showed for a few seconds before it faded away

_PIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPI_

_"Did you see that? Someone came on, right?" Yosuke asked "Hey, what do you think?_

_Did you recognize who appeared just now?"_

"Judging by the height, I'd say Naoto..." Yu noted

_"Yeah...just what does he think of the Midnight Channel?" Yosuke questioned "Ugh, I don't get this at all. It's gonna keep nagging at me, I can tell…I'm sure the others saw it too, so let's get another tomorrow and talk about it. 'Night."_

"See ya..." Yu muttered as he hung up but continued to stare at the TV "I have a bad feeling about this one"

**SEPTEMBER 15/ SCHOOL**

"So about the Midnight Channel last night..." Chie sighed

"I wonder who that was…" Yukiko wondered

"I talked to Teddie, and he says no one's entered the other side…" Yosuke groaned

"If only we could find that Minazuki bastard" Kanji growled "If we don't find him...Naoto might end up like Kou"

"Still hung up on her, huh?" Yosuke asked

"That's-! I ain't hung up on it!" Kanji growled

"It's okay, we all understand. Just don't go overboard, man." Yosuke shrugged

"You little…I said that's not it! Tch…I got stuff to do. I'm outta here." Kanji spat before taking off

"Stop bringing that up, Yosuke…you know he doesn't think it's funny." Chie glared

"Ooh, what? What? Did something happen between Kanji and Naoto-kun!?" Rise gasped

"W-Well that aside, does the town seem quieter than usual?" Yukiko asked

"Well...Kou-kun was just murdered right there in the street..." Labrys remnided "I think people have begun to realize that these cases aren't somethin' to get excited about..."

**SHIROGANE ESTATE**

"Okay..." Naoto muttered as he sat alone in his room "Judging by the previous pattern...they will come for me...tonight

Okay...how will they get in? They won't make their presence known, they'll sneak in..."

Naoto proceeded to stand up and walked over to the window, showing the rainy night sky

"Window probably is not an option, side door perhaps, then-"

_CREAK_

...

_"Someone's entered the room...time is 9:34pm" He mentally noted "Possibly grandfather, turn your head Naoto_

_..._

_Damn it, turn your head! Don't be af-"_

And then whatever train of thought she had was cut off as a hand clasped around her mouth

_"Okay, Naoto, this is it! Don't panic, observe" She gasped as she struggled as the assailant wrapped tried to pull her away from the window "Height and stature...appearance doesn't match Minazuki...it...it's not him!"_

"Damn it, don't make this any harder than it has to be!" The voice demanded

_"Adult male...voice is hoarse, smoker..." She noted as she continued to struggle, managing to twist her head slightly, gaining a small look at his face "Male...Early 40's, Asian, black hair, brown eyes, facial hair, more than stubble, hasn't shaved in awhile_

"Damn it..." He cursed before throwing a burlap sack over her

_"Oh god...oh god..." Naoto gasped "No...don't panic...okay, I'm being dragged...sound of rain, bag is wet, we're outside, damn it...Wh-...I'm being lifted, placed on an elevated flat surface, it's cold, so it's metal, back of a truck perhaps..."_

"I'm sorry...I'm so so sorry..."

_"W-What?" Naoto questioned however, she could feel the bag being lifted and then flung_

_And then she could feel herself plummeting..._

* * *

I don't know _why_ I slipped in the JonTron reference during the King's Game scene, I just kinda did

At this point, I'm pretty sure my 20-25 chapter long mark is not enough, maybe I'll be able end it before it hits 30 chapters but at this point, I have no idea for the final chapter mark

Also, I have an idea for another P4 fanfic that's more of a slice of life story but I want to finish this one first


	17. Sukuna-Hikona

**SUKUNA-HIKONA**

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE/ MIDNIGHT**

_"Good evening, everyone. I am the Detective Prince, Naoto Shirogane. Welcome to _Experiment of the Century: The Genome Project._" The vision of Naoto, clad in a white lab coat stated as he stood infront of an operating table "I will be experimentor and experimentee both in a forbidden yet wonderful bodily alteration process! You shall witness my departure into a new realm…the moment of a new birth! From the chosen day forth, I shall walk a completely different path in life…! And I will share this glorious occasion, this memorable day, with all of you! Do stay tuned!"_

**PIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPI**

_"Hey! Izzat you Senpai?! N-Naoto was just...h-he..." Kanji panicked "So 's this mean he was kidnapped…? You said people only show up clearly on TV once they're thrown into that other world, right!?"_

"Calm down, take a deep breath" Yu suggested

_"Oh, I-I'm sorry!" Kanji apologized "Being a detective, solving cases…it ain't worth shit if he gets himself kidnapped…damn, that idiot pisses me off! Anyways, let's get the gang together and meet first thing after school!"_

"Got it" Yu nodded before he hung up

**SEPTEMBER 16/ JUNES**

"Last night on TV...that was definitely Naoto-kun..." Yukiko muttered sadly

"What's the verdict, Teddie?" Chie asked "Is he really in there?"

"I do smell someone." Teddie nodded

"It's just like before…nothing's changed." Yosuke sighed

"Like…before…of course! That's why Naoto-kun appeared on the news so suddenly!" Yukiko recalled "He said something didn't seem right, and that he wasn't convinced. He also believed that the people who are kidnapped appear on TV first, remember?"

"Wait, you're saying…he's using himself as bait!?" Yosuke spluttered "We came to the same conclusion he did, about how people who become famous through TV would disappear. Could he be trying to prove the theory by using himself…?"

"You mean he got kidnapped on purpose!? That's crazy…" Chie exasperated "He could be killed!"

"He said, _This is not a game former either_…" Rise quoted "It's all my fault…I'm the one that said that to him…"

"That idiot! Why the hell didn't he just tell us!?" Kanji roared as he smashed his fist into the table

"He knew we'd stop him if he did… " Yosuke told him "Instead, he left us clues so we could figure it out and-"

"I know! That son of a…" Kanji growled

"So...Minazuki's gone back to throwing people into the TV" Daisuke said aloud "Why change back now?"

"Naoto found that weird too..." Yu recalled "In all honesty...it makes no sense that Minazuki would kill Ms. Yamano, Saki-senpai, and Ebi by throwing them into the TV and then flat out murder King Moron, Mitsuo Kubo and Kou..."

"What're you sayin'?" Labrys asked

"I think...perhaps Minazuki isn't working alone" Yu stated to the group "I'm sure Naoto thought that too"

"W-What makes you say that?" Chie asked

"I don't know what it is, but for some reason...I feel this weird connection to Naoto" Yu told them, completely missing the somewhat jealous look Kanji was giving him "Like I already know so much about him..."

...

"Is there something you're not telling us?" Yosuke asked "You're not two timing Chie with a dude are you?"

"W-W-What?! No!" Yu gaped

"Narukami has a point...the pattern of murder's has changed" Daisuke sighed "But it's not like he can't use the TV anymore, Labrys-san was thrown in just a while back..."

"To hell with Minazuki for now!" Kanji snapped "If we don't get off our asses, that stupid Naoto's gonna die in there! We gotta go find him!"

**TV WORLD**

"W-What is this place..." Yumi muttered

"Oh, this is your first time in here isn't it Yumi-chan?" Teddie questioned before handing her a pair of glasses "Here you go!"

"W-Wow! It's so clear now!" Yumi gasped

"Something's definitely in here" Rise noted as she scanned the area with Himiko "And the world seems to have grown larger"

"That's amazing, Rise-chan! There's no way my nose can pick up that much." Teddie praised "Shall I give you a massage?"

"Don't bother her!" Yosuke snapped as he smacked the bear on the head

"I know he's here, but I can't tell where…" Rise sighed

"Hey, when we looked for Kanji, we couldn't find him at first..." Daisuke reminded "We had no idea which way we should look…but when we got some clues, we were able to track him down"

"Dammit…there's too much we don't know about that kid…" Kanji groaned "But if we don't do something, he's gonna…"

"Hey, snap out of it! This is just like all the other times." Chie said to him "Let's not panic, keep an eye on the weather, and do this like always. We'll save him, no problem! First, we need to look for something that'll help us locate him..."

"I-I know…I-I wasn't panicking." Kanji muttered "We know he's over here…so all we gotta do is get him out."

"I'm sorry I couldn't find him…" Rise sighed as her Persona vanished "All I need is some kind of hint to help me understand him better. Then I could find him for sure!"

"Hi there!"

"Adachi-san?" Yu questioned the voice

"H-Hey there!" The detective waved "I saw you all enter this place...I was kinda hesitant to jump into a TV but...you guys have realized Naoto-kun's gone missing too, right?"

"Actually this is good" Rise said "Adachi-san, could you tell us something about Naoto?"

"Something about him?" Adachi echoed "I dunno about that-"

"He's a very secretive person..."

"Huh?! Detective Suou?!" Adachi questioned

"Who _isn't _here?!" Yosuke shouted

"Naoto-kun is very secretive...quiet, won't talk unless you talk to him" Katsuya sighed "And uh..

"What?" Rise asked

"L-Let me whisper this to you..." Katsuya said as he walked over to Rise and whispered something in her ear

"WHAT?!" She shrieked

"W-Whoa! What is it?!" Kanji gulped

"N-No way!" Rise gasped

"Uh-huh" Katsuya nodded

"W-Wow..." Rise muttered as she re-summoned Himiko "I...I...still can't find h-him!"

"Seriously?" Chie groaned

"Then In all honesty, I'm lost here" Katsuya sighed "I'll ask around, I'm a detective so it won't seem suspicious when I do..."

"I'll help!" Adachi piped in

"Very well, come Adachi-san" Katsuya nodded "You kids rest up...you'll need your strength..."

"Okay" The group nodded

...

"Oh! And one more thing!" Adachi yipped "Tatsumi-kun, try to lay low for a while!"

"Huh? Why?" Kanji questioned

"They found a knife with your fingerprints on it near where Kou Ichijo was murdered" Adachi stated

"H-Huh?!" Kanji spluttered

"Hey, that's right" Yosuke told him "Kou had a knife that night, and you picked it up after Daisuke knocked it away"

"I-I did?...I did! Shit!" Kanji cursed

"I've tried my best to divert their attention but they want to take you in for questioning" Katsuya stated "Like Adachi-san said, try to lay low for a while..."

"O-Okay..." Kanju muttered

"Why are you helping us?" Yu asked

"This case is now far more serious..." Katsuya told him as he pushed up his glasses "With the sixth consecutive death in this case, I can longer stand on the sidelines..."

"We're police officers after all" Adachi smiled

"So just leave this part to us" Katsuya nodded

"Oh! Before you go, here!" Teddie shouted out before he handed the two police officers pairs of glasses

"Glasses?" Adachi wondered before he put them on and the fog cleared "W-Whoa!"

"Indeed..." Katsuya muttered as he switched his regular pair of the ones Teddie handed him "These will help tremendously..."

"But right now, we gotta track down some clues" Adachi said as he took them off

"We'll report back when we find what we're looking for" Katsuya said as the two headed from the exit

...

"Whoa, that's...actually really helpful" Chie noted

"So we're just supposed to wait?" Kanji groaned "More importantly, I gotta hide somewhere for a few days?"

"Sucks to be you" Yosuke sighed

"Hey, what did Katsuya-san tell you?" Daisuke asked Rise

"I...I can't say" Rise gulped before she scampered off

**SHIROGANE ESTATE**

"So..." Naoto's Grandfather mumbled "You're here about Naoto?"

"Yes, sir" Katsuya noted

"Officially, a missing persons report cannot be filed until after the person has been missing for over 24 hours" Grandfather stated "Naoto vanished sometime after 9pm, it is now 3pm the following day, It's only been 18 hours..."

"With the incidents occuring as of late, I cannot afford to take any risks" Katsuya stated "When Naoto did not show up at work this morning, I knew something was wrong..."

"'That so..." Naoto's Grandfather sighed as he looked out of a window "You're not a fool, you're a detective after all...is it a family business for you?"

"Of sorts" Katsuya nodded "My brother is also a detective..."

"I see...we Shirogane have been detectives for generations" Naoto's Grandfather told him "Before Naoto, my daughter Ami, Naoto's mother, was also a Detective...her life, as well as the life of her husband was robbed from us in a car accident, leaving Naoto an orphan before the age of five"

"I see..." Katsuya nodded "I too was orphaned in an accident..."

"Yes, but as you mentioned, you were left with your brother" He stated "I had no choice but to raise Naoto on my own, raise her the same way I had raised my daughter 30 years earlier..."

"I see...that must have been hard" Katsuya muttered

"I swore to protect Naoto" Her Grandfather said "And now...she was kidnapped right under my nose..."

"Hence why I need your help" Katsuya told him "I need your help to locate her, a clue...anything..."

"It's possible that Naoto's pursuit of a certain subject has led to this" He sighed "She had made contact with a certain group, the previous kidnap victims...perhaps..."

"Sir?" Katsuya questioned the mans suddent stop

"Naoto's curiosity has been peaked by something as of late..." He sighed "Her pursuit of it may have gotten her in trouble..."

"What is it?" Katsuya asked

"It's possible that she snuck a look at this..." Naoto's grandfather sighed as he pulled out a file and handed it Katsuya "It's her birth certificate..."

"Why would she-" Katsuya muttered before he opened it

And his jaw dropped to the floor

"W-What?!" He gaped "This..."

"Yes..." Naoto's grandfather nodded as he took the file back "It's possible she discovered this...pursued it by investigating that group, and ended up the latest victim as a result...All I ask is for you to keep this to yourself..."

"O-Ofcouse" Katsuya bowed "Thank you for your co-operation Mr Shirogane"

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Hmm? Shirogane is missing?" The officer questioned

"Yeah" Adachi nodded

"That kid is skipping school to do his investigation…?" The officer groaned "What's his problem, really? Just because he's not satisfied…sheesh. All we wanna do is shut the book on this thing so we don't have to deal with it anymore…I wish he'd let it go already. No wonder the whole department treats him like a 's getting all worked up over nothing. That's why everyone gives him the cold shoulder, ya know."

"So you could say, he's..._obsessed_ with the investigation?" Adachi questioned "And sick of being treated like a child..."

**SEPTEMBER 17/ TV WORLD**

"I see…" Rise muttered at the information Adachi told him "So he's being stubborn about the case…but it seems like it's rare for Naoto-kun to get so worked up over something. Okay…I've got a good feel for him. I think I can do this. It wont' take long for me to find him with my Persona, so be ready to follow me once I do!"

**SECRET LAB ENTRANCE**

"What is this place?" Kanji questioned as the group stood before a dark base-like building

"It's all sci-fi…" Yosuke noted "Heyyy, doesn't it remind you of those secret hideouts in live action shows?"

"Oh yeah…hehe" Kanji chuckled "I used to watch Featherman all the time when I was a kid."

"I hear that those are really tough shoots. A lot of the actors do their own stunts, like jumping through fire themselves." Rise stated

"Well, it's every man's dream to do that stuff." Yosuke said

"Yeah, I can understand that. They're action-based, like kung fu movies." Chie nodded "And just the phrase _secret hideout_ has this exciting ring to it!"

"I totally hear you." Yu chuckled

"Actually, when I was a kid, I had my own secret place near the mountain by Yukiko's house." Chie confessed "I'd pretend that a legendary kung fu master was teaching me special techniques. Hwataaa!"

"You got it all wrong…" Yosuke groaned "But hey, so this secret hideout thingy came from Naoto's mind? I guess our proper boy detective isn't as grown up as he looks. Alright, let's get going."

"Great...'nother lab" Labrys sighed

"I don't like this...reminds me too much of Ameno Torifune..." Katsuya groaned as the group stepped through the entrrace

_**UNKNOWN INTRUDER DETECTED INSIDE FACILITY**_

"Whoa!" Yosuke yelped at the loud voice

_**THREAT LEVEL: YELLOW**_

_**DEPLOYING GUARDS INSIDE THE FACILITY.**_

_**WARNING! WARNING!**_

_**ATTENTION INTRUDERS! LEAVE THE FACILITY IMMEDIATELY!**_

_**I REPEAT: LEAVE THE FACILITY IMMEDIATELY!**_

"Huh? Intruders…that means us, right?" Rise questioned

"Everything here's so green and murky..." Yu noted

_**WARNING! WARNING!**_

_**ATTENTION INTRUDERS! LEAVE THE FACILITY IMMEDIATELY!**_

_**I REPEAT: LEAVE THE FACILITY IMMEDIATELY!**_

"It appears Naoto-kun doesn't want our help..." Katsuya mutteed

"I-I don't really get it, but let's go on for now!" Rise chanted as the group began to encounter shadows

"So these are Shadows..." Katsuya wondered aloud

"Huh? You've never faced shadows?" Yukiko questioned

"Back in my day, it was demons..." Katsuya told her as he summoned Hyperion "But it makes no difference...they all fall down the same way"

"Remember, be careful..." Chie warned Yu as he summoned Izanagi-no-Okami

"Relax, I won't overexert myself this time" Yu told her

"Ryujin!" Daisuke called his upgrade his Persona

"H-Hoderi-no-Mikoto!" Yumi called

"Rokuten-Maoh!" Kanji called his too

"I'm not on the sidelines anymore..." Rise stated as Himiko changed to combat mode "I'm gonna fight too"

"Asterius!" Labrys called hers out too, as well as drawing his large axe

"Magatsu-Izanagi!" Adachi summoned

"Go, Izanagi-no-Okami!" Yu yelled

_"This sensation..." Katsuya smiled as he observed Yu "It's almost as if I'm standing beside Tatsuya..." _

And as they continued on, the voices became more frequent

_**WARNING! WARNING!**_

_**ATTENTION INTRUDERS! LEAVE THE FACILITY IMMEDIATELY!**_

_**I REPEAT: LEAVE THE FACILITY IMMEDIATELY!**_

"Hey Senpai, when Naoto-kun appeared on the Midnight Channel…" Rise muttered "He said he was going to undergo a _body alteration operation_…Did that mean Naoto-kun's going to be altered here!? Crap, we need to hurry!"

"Come on, we have to hurry!" Yu told them

_**UNKNOWN INTRUDERS HAVE ENTERED BF4**_

_**THREAT LEVEL: ORANGE.**_

_**MAJOR FACILITY AREAS LOCKED.**_

_**ELIMINATE THE INTRUDERS!**_

* * *

_**UNKNOWN INTRUDERS HAVE ENTERED SECTOR 2**_

_**THREAT LEVEL: RED.**_

_**DEPLOYING INCREASED GUARDS WITHIN THE FACILITY. THE INTRUDERS MUST BE ELIMINATED!**_

"The increased security probably means we're getting close" Yu noted

"Man…It's seriously rejecting us…" Yosuke muttered

"We'll just have to get ourselves fired up and bust on through!" Kanji roared

"I can sense Naoto-kun nearby!" Rise shouted "He's just below us"

**BOTTOM FLOOR**

"Naoto!" Kanji called out as the group arrived before the two Naoto's, stood before the operating table with was adjoined with several buzzsaws

"Ah, it's about time..." Naoto sighed "Dealing with this child has been quite a pain…"

"**No! No, no, don't go!**" Shadow Naoto sobbed

"It's useless speaking with you. I need to go back now…" Naoto groaned

"Well this is...different from what I expected" Yu muttered

"**Why? Why're you leaving me here!? Why am I always left alone!?**" The shadow sobbed "**It's so lonely…I don't wanna be alone!**"

"Naoto-kun…" Yukiko mumbled

"You wear the same face as me…" Naoto noted "It's as if you're implying we're one and the same. But the difference between me and you is…"

"**Why delude yourself?**" The shadow glared"**I am you...these childish gestures are no mere affectation…they're the truth. The fools all say it, don't they…? **_**You're only a child, Keep out of our business, kid, **_**and so forth. No matter how many cases you spend hours cogitating over, no matter how many crimes you solve, you're a child in their eyes. It's your brain they're interested in. The grey matter locked up in that skull.**

**As long as they need it, you're an ace detective! But once you're done, it's back to the playpen with you. You haven't the means to deal with society's two-faced nature…**

**You're just a lonely child.**

"Naoto..." Yosuke muttered

"**I wanna be a grown-up…I wanna be a big boy right now…then they'll see who I am…I…I want a reason for me to stay…**"

"That's enough. I can find my own reason for living…" Naoto glared

"**Hah… I'm telling you that's impossible.**" The Shadow mocked "**You are but a child. How can you change that essential truth?**"

"S-Stop it!" Naoto demanded

"Oh no..." Yu muttered

"**At your core, you admire the sort of **_**strong**_** and **_**cool**_** men who populate detective fiction. But in trying to emulate them, you must know that in truth, you're nothing of the sort-you're a child. There's no avoiding first principles…admit that you're a child, and admit that there's nothing you can do about it.**" Shadow Naoto said with a horrifying glare "**Now then! Our analysis is complete. Let us begin the body alteration procedure. You have no objections, do you…**_**Naoto**_** Shirogane?**"

"Stop it!" Naoto roared

"Shit! She's starting to crack!" Kanji yelped

"_**Naoto**_**… Such a cool, manly name!**" The Shadow laughed"**But a name doesn't change the truth. It doesn't let you cross the barrier between the sexes!**

**How can you be an ideal male when you were never male to being with?!**"

"Wait, what…? Did he…did I hear that right!?" Yosuke yelled

"H-He's not a guy!?" Kanji stuttered

"Welp, cat's out of the bag" Katsuya sighed

"I won't throw a tantrum…that accomplishes nothing…!" Naoto yelled

"**Hahahaha! How often I've heard those words from the adults.**" Shadow Naoto laughed "_**Throwing a tantrum won't solve anything, Naoto-kun**_**, and other such bilge! They made you cry, didn't they? Yet here you are, mimicking those same men. What exactly are you trying to justify?**

"What…?" Naoto questioned

"**It's all right. You needn't suffer anymore. That's why you're undergoing this body alteration procedure to begin with.**" Shadow Naoto stated "**You throw a tantrum, but it fails to change the situation a single bit…I can quite understand the feeling. After all…I am you**."

"That's not true!" Naoto roared

"Don't say it!" Chie pleaded

"It's okay…let the kid spill the whole thing. If not, Naoto's just gonna keep hurting…" Kanji sighed "We'll just do our job and kick the Shadow's ass. Yeah?"

"**Ahahahaha! As if you know anything about me!**" Shadow Naoto laughed as he began to transform "**You'll kick my ass, huh? Fine… Go ahead and try, you lizard-brained imbecile!**"

"Save the discussion for later!" Yosuke yelped

"Here it comes!" Rise yelped

"I've seen a lot in my day, a shape-shifting god, a spaceship, rumors coming true..." Katsuya listed as the Shadow fully transformed "But Giant Cyborg Naoto is pretty out there..."

"**I AM A SHADOW, THE TRUE SELF**" The demonic machine droned "**ARE YOU TOO, SICK OF YOUR BODIES?! THEN LET THE OPERATION COMMENCE**"

"It's 11-on-1, you do the math!" Kanji roared "Rokuten-Maoh! Ziodyne!"

"Izanagi-no-Okami! Bufudyne!" Yu yelled

"Hyperion! Heat Kaiser!" Katsuya called

"**Ugh! Why won't you lay down and die?!**" Shadow Naoto roared "**You children can't do anything at all**!"

"Hang on Naoto..." Yosuke muttered "Susano-o! Garudyne!"

"Amaterasu, Agidyne!" Yukiko called

"Suzuka-Gongen! God Hand!" Chie called out as the Persona landed a devastating strike

"**AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**" Shadow Naoto screamed

"Ryujin!" Daisuke summonded his Persona which struck the Shadow

"Go Magatsu-Izanagi!" Adachi commanded as his Persona did the same

"Hoderi-no-Mikoto! Strike!" Yumi sumonned her Persona which too attacked the Shadow

"**DAMN YOU ALL!**" Shadow Naoto snapped

"Himiko!" Rise shouted as her Persona fired a sound blast that dazed the Shadow

"Asterius!" Labrys shouted as she dashed forward with her Persona, it and her large axe striking at the same time

"**NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!**" Shadow Naoto yelled as she began to fade, aiming her gun at the group

"Scatter!" Katsuya commanded as the group avoided the blast

"Damn it, what's it gonna take for this thing to go down?!" Kanji snapped

"I dunno...but we have to finish it!" Yu stated "I won't let Naoto suffer anymore!"

"Damn right!" Kanji snapped "Come on Senpai!"

"ZIODYNE!" Yu and Kanji called out in unison as their Persona fired the huge lightning blasts, completely smashing the Shadow

"**DAAAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMNIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTT!**" The Shadow screamed as it fell to the ground, once again in human form

"Is it done?" Yosuke asked

"Appears so...be on guard otherwise" Katsuya suggested

"So Naoto-kun was a girl the whole time..." Chie muttered

"Ngh…" Naoto groaned as she began to pull herself up

"Are you awake!?" Yukiko asked

"Where am I…?" Naoto groaned as she rubbed her head "I remember you all arriving, and…that's right…you saw everything…"

Sensing the others wanting an explanation, she sighed...

"I lost both my parents in an accident. I was still young, so my grandfather took me in.

I was inept at making friends…so I spent my time reading detective novels in my grandfather's study." Naoto sighed "_When I grow up… I'm gonna be an awesome, hard-boiled detective…_my parents were proud of their job. I had no qualms about following in their footsteps…an inherited occupation can feel stifling to many, but I welcomed it. I yearned for the day I could be a detective myself…perhaps I inherited that desire from them as well. I was always alone…seeing that, my grandfather must have believed it was his duty to help me realize my dream. I secretly aided my grandfather with his clients… And before I knew it, people started calling me Junior Detective. At first, I was delighted. But not everything went so smoothly…"

"What was that you said about _You're only a child_...?" Yukiko questioned

"Not everyone welcomes my collaboration when it comes to solving cases…" Naoto explained "My status as a _child_ was sufficient to offend many of those whom I worked with. Were that the only issue, then it would have resolved itself with time…but even though I will once day change from a child to and adult. I will never change from a woman to a man...

"Do you not like being a girl…?" Yukiko asked "Is that why you always dress like a boy?"

"My sex doesn't fit my ideal image of a detective…besides, the police department is a male-oriented society. If they had the slightest _concrete_ reason to look down on me, no one would need me anymore…" Naoto explained

"As shameful as it is, that is how this buisness works" Katsuya sighed

"Detective Katsuya...heh, I knew there was more to you than meets the eye" Naoto chuckled "Detective Adachi?...Oh, that is a surprise"

"You don't know that's how things would have gone..." Kanji sighed

"Hey…You must know already that what you yearn for isn't to become an adult or become a boy…" Naoto stated

"You're absolutely right." Naoto nodded as she stood up and walked to her Shadow "I'm sorry…I kept ignoring you, pretending you didn't exist. But you are me…and I am you. You've always been inside me. What I should yearn for…no, what I must strive for isn't to become a man. It's to accept myself for who I really am…"

_The strength of heart required to face oneself has been made manifest. Naoto has faced her other self…She has obtained the facade used to overcome life's hardships, the Persona __**Sukuna-Hikona**__!"_

...

"In any event, you're a devious bunch" Naoto chuckled "To think that you kept something like this hidden...haha…no wonder the perpetrator has eluded the police…but it's apparent now… This case is far from over."

"That's right…and you proved it, Naoto." Yosuke nodded

"Anyways, we can talk more later. We need to get you out of here." Kanji stated

"Here" Labrys offered her hand

"Thank you" Naoto nodded as Labrys pulled her up, and it was not that she fully noticed her "L-Labrys-san...are you a-"

"A robot? Yeah" She nodded

"A-Amazing!" Naoto gasped "An actual and-..."

"Easy, easy!" Yu yelped as he caught the girl before she fell "Come on, let's get her out of here"

**ELECTRONICS DEPARTMENT**

"Sheesh… She really put her life on the line for this…" Chie sighed

"You're too frickin' reckless, dammit…" Kanji growled

"I never doubted that you'd all come for me…" Naoto sighed "But I must impart something...the man who kidnapped me, wasn't Sho Minazuki"

"W-What?!" Yumi gasped

"So...Yu was right" Yosuke sighed "Damn it all..."

"So there's more to this..." Kanji sighed "What a dumbass. You're no genius at all. We were tearing our hair out over you…"

"So you did worry about her, Kanji! Awww…" Rise giggled

"Shuddup! M-Mind your own damn business!" Kanji snapped

"I'll take her home. I don't think she can go back by herself." Rise stated

"It's… all right… I can…" Naoto groaned

"No way, missy! Don't think that doing everything on your own is the _adult_ thing to do!" Rise snapped "C'mon, let's go. Grab on!"

"I should get back to Police Station" Katsuya said

"Me too..." Adachi sighed

"Let's all get something to eat..." Yosuke sighed "I'm starving..."

"Yeah" Yu nodded

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE/ EVENING**

"Heeeyyy! Welcome back!"

"A-Adachi-san?" Yu questioned the detective who was clearly plastered

"Sorry, we got off early today…" Dojima sighed

"C'mon, take a seat. They found Naoto-kun! Oh, uh, do you know who Naoto-kun is?" Adachi hicced, Yu couldn't tell if he was keeping up and act or he was so drunk he couldn't remember "He just up and vanished without a word, but it looks like he's back now. Way to put a scare into everyone… Yeesh!"

"I'm relieved." Yu nodded

...

"You don't seem surprised." Dojima said with a glare "Come to think about it...neither were you Adachi...you didn't already know he was found, did you?"

"Awww, you really oughtta do somethin' about that habit of yours, Dojima-san." Adachi pouted "Yu-kun, Labrys and Naoto-kun go to the same school. Rumors spread fast out here, y'know. But man, why'd Naoto-kun disappear? I guess he can be a little difficult…maybe he got sulky and ran away from home? But I tell you, I was shocked to hear that he up and vanished like that. If there'd been a seventh murder, we'd be back to square one again…"

"Adachi…" Dojima groaned

"You know what sucks? We still don't know where this Minazuki guy is!" Adachi slurred "How're we gonna make a case like this I wonder if Dojima-san's instinct is right…maybe there really is another perp out there. The real one…"

"Adachi! How many times I gotta say it!? Quit running your mouth like that!" Dojima snapped

"Whoa! S-Sorry!" Adachi yelped

"Alright, see here! Don't worry about the case. Just go study like a normal student. If you don't…" Dojima began to scold Yu before giving up with a sigh "I'm going to bed."

"Sorry…I killed the mood there." Adachi gulped "But yeah, I can totally understand why Dojima-san's worried. Just leave the case to us police. You know the problems it could cause if something happened, right? Like, if it happened you were mixed up in it, we'd be real worried…"

"Are more scary things going to happen?" Nanako asked

"N-No way, Nanako-chan! Everything's all right now!" Adachi waved it off "We'll catch the bad man, so no more scary things will happen. Right? Everything's just fine."

"Okay…" Nanako nodded

"A-Anyways, your dad's just a worrywart. Leave it to me! You might not know to look at me, but I got the most brains in the whole police department!" Adachi laughed "Oh! Was that too hard to get? Did you get it? W-Well, now that Dojima-san's gone, I should get going too…G'nite!"

"What does _got brains_ mean?" Nanako asked as Adachi left

"It means he's smart." Yu explained

"Huh…so things'll be all right…?" Nanako questioned

**GAS STATION**

"I-I did what you asked..." The man sobbed "I-I threw her into the TV, and they saved her! S-So you'll help me now right?!"

"Not just yet" The Attendant stated "Your services are still required"

"P-Please!" The man begged "You promised to help me get back my family!"

"We will..." The Attendant nodded "When we are done...don't you want us to reunite you with your Wife and Son?"

"Y-Yes..." He nodded "I-I understand

"Good" The Attendant smiled "We vastly appreciate your services, Shinya Narukami..."

* * *

Short Chapter?: Yes

Eventful Chapter?: _Yes_


	18. The World

**THE WORLD**

**SEPTEMBER 24**

**1 WEEK LATER**

**POLICE STATION**

"Still no word on Tatsumi?" Dojima sighed

"That's a negative" Adachi sighed "He's-"

"I've heard about this"

"Huh? Detective Shirogane?!" Dojima gaped "What happened?! We thought you dropped off the face of the planet!"

"Yes, I came down with a sudden illness, my apologies" Naoto sighed "I've heard that Tatsumi-san is under suspicious due to his prints being discovered on the knife found at the Ichijo murder scene. I'm here to tell you that won't be necessary"

"And why's that?" Dojima asked

"Tatsumi-kun was the one who discovered and handed me the knife, that's how his fingerprints were on it" Naoto explained

"If that was the case, why didn't you list it in the report?" Dojima questioned

"Again, I've been suffering from an illness, I was feeling hazy that night, I apologize" Naoto sighed

...

"Alright" Dojima sighed "I'll tell the higher ups to call off the search for Tatsumi"

"Thank you" Naoto nodded as she stumbled slightly "Sorry...I've yet to fully recover"

"It's fine..." Dojima muttered as he picked up the phone

"I'll leave you to it" Naoto nodded as she took off

"Feel better soon, Detective!" Adachi waved

...

"Thank you for housing Tatsumi-kun for the last few days Katsuya-san" Naoto thanked as she passed him in the hall

"It was not a problem" Katsuya smiled "Though, as a Police Officer, harboring a fugitive is a strange feeling..."

**OKINA CITY**

"Today, we're shopping for you!" Rise smiled at Yu

"Me?" Yu asked

"I'll put together the best outfit for you, so be prepared." Rise smiled "I've already checked out most of the stores. First is… over there…"

"What's wrong?" Yu asked

"That ad…I see… So Kanami is the new poster girl…" Rise muttered as she observed the ad that was in the store window, before noting Yu's confusion "Oh, uhh…that store's sign has a girl who was at the agency with me. Kanami Mashita…she was my junior…she was cute, so I figured she would sell."

"Isn't...that a good thing?" Yu questioned

"Huh? Oh, yeah." Rise muttered "If some other girl takes off, I'm sure the agency will leave me alone."

"_Man, Kanamin is sooo cute." A teenager infront of the store smiled_

_"It's crazy that she's still in middle school." Another noted "I like how she's not so fake, like Risette."_

_"Yeah, Kanamin's like… plain, and honest. Somewhere between a little sister and the girl next door. Like, the kind of girl you want to protect."_

...

"Ri-" Yu attempted to talk to her

"Yeah, yeah, I'm _fake_...that's the role I played…It was all an act…everything…Hey! All that stuff about Kanami is an act, too!" Rise yelled at the group "Let's go home, Senpai. I don't want to be here."

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"Senpai, are you…happy right now? Do you like being with me…like this, the way we are now?" Rise asked "You like having such a cute underclassman, right? I'm an ex-idol, after all."

"That part doesn't matter." Yu told her with a shake of his head "You're you...there's nothing fake about that"

"Y-Yeah, of course not…what am I saying?" Rise said with a small chuckle "You see me as Rise, huh…? The real me…I'm sorry. I was just irritated. I dragged you all the way to Okina, then just came back without doing anything…I'm really sorry…"

"It's okay" Yu smiled

"Oh, big bro and Rise-chan?" Came the voice of...

"Oh, Nanako-chan…Y-You're going home?" Rise asked

"Yep!" She nodded

"H-Hey, Nanako-chan, umm, well…" Rise muttered "Do you know who Kanami Mashita is…?"

"Ummm… Kanami… Mashita? Oh, you mean Kanamin?" Nanako questioned "Yeah, I know her. Some of my friends like her. I tell them, _Rise-chan's way better_!"

"Y-You do, huh? Hahaha, thanks…" Rise smiled "B-But I'm totally different from how I am on TV…you must be disappointed…"

"Nope." Nanako denied "I like you."

"Huh? Oh…thanks. But that means…you like the _me_ over here, huh…" Rise stated

"The..._me_?" Nanako repeated "Aren't you just Rise-chan? I like you, that's all"

"Oh, er…ummmm…Thanks, Nanako-chan. I like you too." Rise smiled

"Yay!" Nanako cheered before she gasped "Oh, the show's about to start! I'm going home now! Bye!"

...

"_You're just Rise-chan_, huh…?" Rise sighed "Wh-What was I thinking, asking all that to Nanako-chan…? Risette…I quit so I wouldn't have to think about stuff like this…I have no regrets about showbiz. I wouldn't want to go back. Why would I sacrifice my real self!?

I just want to become a Rise who's needed by the ones who see the real me. Like you, Senpai. That's the _me_ I want to be. It's the truth."

"You still don't know if you really wanna leave...do you?" Yu asked

"N-No..." Rise sighed "I...I…got a little upset today when I heard those kids talk about Kanami. I'm sure I'll forget it by tomorrow."

"It's okay y'know..." Yu told her as he put his hand on her shoulder "You can talk to me whenever..."

...

"How do you do it Senpai?" Rise sighed happily

"What?" Yu questioned

"Be this...incredible" Rise giggled "It's a bad habit...too many girls will end up falling in love with you...I know because I'm one of them"

"R-Rise" Yu gaped

"I love you but I know I can't have you...you love Chie-senpai, you adore her...I can see it whenever you're near her" Rise said "Being in love with you, even after that...I'm so selfish. When I was working, I met lots of people, but at the cost of free time to meet people outside of work. I had no free time at all…so when I was alone, I was truly alone. Whatever I was thinking about… I had to keep them to myself. So…right now…I don't want to be alone…stay with me just a little longer…"

...

"As...a friend, right?" Yu asked

"Yeah..." She smiled "Just as a friend"

**SHIROGANE ESTATE**

"Naoto, you're back" Her Grandfather sighed in relief

"Grandpa..." Naoto groaned "I know you're concerned about me, but it's okay, I can walk these streets just fine"

"I worry about you..." He told her

"I understand, but having security outside my doors and windows 24/7 is excessive" Naoto sighed "I don't need Yakushiji-san as my personal bodyguard, I'm fine..."

"You were kidnapped" He sternly told her

"I know, believe me..." Naoto sighed "And before you ask, no, I do not know the reason I was kidnapped, just like how I didn't know yesterday, or the day before that, or the day before _that_"

"I still think it has something to with-"

"For the last time, Narukami-senpai had nothing to do my disappearance" Naoto groaned "Why do suspect him so?"

...

"It matters not" He stated

"Honestly" Naoto growled before she shuffled past him "Sorry...I'm still feeling hazy, I'm going to bed"

**SEPTEMBER 25/ SHADOW OPERATIVES BASE**

"A new Persona user?" Mitsuru questioned

"Indeed, according to Katsuya-san's report, a woman by the name of Naoto Shirogane has jointed the Inaba Persona users" Kikuno stated

"I see...quite a group they have down there" Mitsuru muttered "And despite that, we still haven't found anything related to Minazuki..."

"There's another thing, according to Ms Shirogane, Sho Minazuki was not her attacker" Kikuno told her

"What?!" Mitsuru gasped "You mean...Minazuki is not operating alone?!"

"That appears to be the case..." Kikuno sighed sadly

"Damn it!" Mitsuru roared "If that's the case, then...I fear Katsuya and Labrys may not be enough"

"Do you trust the Inaba Persona users?" Kikuno asked

"I do...but..." Mitsuru sighed "I'd feel better knowing that there were more experienced Persona users down there..."

"Is there anyone else we can send?" Kikuno asked

"No..." Mitsuru sighed "There's no one..."

"Then I plead to you...have faith in them" Kikuno asked

**SEPTEMBER 26/ OKINA CITY**

"Why here…? I thought we were gonna celebrate saving Naoto…" Kanji sighed as the group stood in a department store

"Yeah! We're gonna celebrate with a shopping spree! And you have the honor of carrying our bags." Rise smiled

"Senpai…now I need saving." Kanji groaned

"Give it up, Kanji." Yu sighed "It's a fight we can't win"

"Attaboy, Yu-kun." Chie laughed

"I'm going to buy a lot today." Yukiko said happily

"Me too! I've got money to burn!" Rise cheered

"Alright, alright…" Kanji groaned "Tch…I should've told 'em I had to watch the house, like Yosuke-senpai…"

**SEPTEMBER 27/ GAS STATION**

"What's with you?" Sho scoffed

"I...J-Just let me see my family" Shinya Narukami pleaded "Y-You've kept me here since I came to this town...I-I-I just want to see Motoko and Yu!"

"Ask yourself...do _they _want to see _you_?" The Gas Station attendant asked "The way you are now...the things you've done...they won't forgive you until we change this world, and we can do that when we end this...they'll live in our new world, don't worry"

"I...I...and Nao-...?"

"Her too..." The Attendant nodded

"God...Naoto" Shinya sobbed

**SEPTEMBER 28/ DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"You know, I just looked outside..." Dojima told his family "Let's go for a walk in a bit.

There's somewhere I want to go..."

"Huh? It's pitch black outside" Motoko told him

"I know" Dojima chuckled "Come on, jackets and shows, let's go"

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"It's scary at night!" Nanako said somewhat happily "But it's fun with you and big bro!"

"Don't fall in." Dojima laughed as Nanako ran along the river bank, Motoko alongside her to make sure she didn't fall in

"_Why'd we come here?_...You've been saying all this time how you wanted to come here, right?" Dojima asked Yu

"This is where you and your wife took Nanako to pick flowers..." Yu stated

"Yeah...that's right" Dojima nodded "Let's come again on a nicer day. We can have a picnic."

"Yeah! Yay!" Nanako cheered as she heard his words "Can I go closer to the river? The fish might be sleeping!"

"Alright, alright. Watch your step, okay?" Dojima laughed

"Okay!" Nanako cheered

...

"That look on her face...that's something I haven't seen in a long time" Dojima chuckled "I'm going to keep up my search for the criminal who ran over Chisato. But this time, it's not to escape from anything. I'm just doing it because…I'm a detective. Seems I forgot something as basic as that. You made me remember what's important to me. I owe you for that.

This town is my town. It's the place where you and Nanako live. That's why I'm gonna live on, protecting this place. As a detective…as a father."

_"Dammit! He's still after us!"_

"What the?" Dojima questioned as someone sped off along the path Hey, he's…You there What's wrong!?"

"Detective Dojima…?" A police officer questioned "I-I'm sorry to bother you while you're off duty…"

"Don't sweat it. Who are they?" Dojima asked

"Oh, it's that group of juvie thieves. You know, the one that's been the talk of the town…" The officer sighed

"Thieves!? Those punks…" Dojima spat

"Dad, are you going?" Nanako asked

"Yeah…arresting the bad guys is my…I mean, your father's job." Dojima nodded "Yu, take care of Nanako."

"Go get 'em" Yu smiled

"Yeah!" Dojima smiled back before he took off "Don't you know who I am? I'm Detective Dojima of the Inaba PD, feared by punks and thugs city-wide. Don't you two worry about me. Head on home, okay? Awwwwwwwright! Stop right there, you punks!"

"Go get 'em, Dad!" Nanako cheered "He's so cool…!"

"Come on...let's go home." Motoko giggled

"I need to get the bath ready…oh, and let's make a late night snack!" Nanako stated "I'm hungry."

**SEPTEMBER 29/ CEMETERY**

"There you go Ichijo-kun, some nice flowers" Yukiko smiled as she placed the flowers in front of the tombstone

"Here, the incense" Kanji said as he placed it down and began to light it

"And this..." Daisuke as he pulled out a photoframe, featuring a photo of a young him and Kou and placed it in front of the flowers

"We'll see you again...someday" Yosuke sighed

"'Wish I gotta know 'im betta..." Labrys muttered as the group fell into a quiet hush

"Come on..." Yu sighed "We got a few more graves to see"

"Yeah...Ebihara and Saki" Yosuke muttered

"Hey..." Yumi muttered to Daisuke "Are you okay?"

"Fine..." Daisuke said quietly as he rubbed his eyes on his sleeve "I'm fine..."

"Rest in peace, Ichijo-senpai" Rise said as she began to pray "We'll find the one who did this to you"

**SEPTEMBER 30/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"I've been meaning to ask, what was your old room like?" Chie asked

"Messier" Yu giggled

"Ah, I'm glad, you're like me then" Chie giggled "My room is filled with posters and stuff..."

"Yeah...I'm just kinda trying to keep the place clean for when I move out" Yu told her

"Oh yeah, when is that?" Chie asked her

"No idea..." Yu sighed "But it's not like I'll be moving far"

"I'm glad...I don't want you to leave me" Chie smiled as she rested her head on his shoulder "This close...I can feel your heartbeat..._thump_..._thump_...that's how you sound...I love everything about you. Your sounds, your smells"

"Chie..." Yu muttered before he stared deep into your eyes "Your eyes...I've never noticed how beautiful they are. They're so brown, like chocolate"

"And yours..." Chie muttered "They're so silver...It's like I'm looking into a storm cloud, they're so..."

Any words that she was going to say were cut off as Yu embraced her and placed their most passionate kiss yet on her. Their hot breaths mixed with each other and their tongues thrashed out in each others mouth, however they stopped for a brief moment and stared into each others eyes

And then Chie grabbed his jacket and slipped it off his shoulders and pulled it off. Yu proceeded to respond by unzipping Chie's jacket, revealing the tanktop underneath. Throwing his jacket off himself and across the room, he kissed Chie and leaned her back until she was flat on her back and he was leaning over her

"Chie...Chie...Chie..." Yu muttered between the pairs kisses as he ran his hands up and down her back

"Yu-kun..." Chie gasped as Yu began to kiss her neck as she shrugged off her jacket, however, soon stopped and stared at her, eye to eye

"If we don't end this now...I don't think I'll be able to stop" Yu told her

...

"Then don't" Chie said before she pulled Yu back down and locked lips once again

"Chie..." Yu gasped as he slipped his hand under her shirt

"This..." Chie gulped "I'm kinda nervous..."

"So am I..." Yu told her as he pulled his hands back "But...I love you"

"I love you..." Chie smiled as she sat up "So...let's"

"Oh Yu" Came from the other side of the door "Dinner, I made enough for Chie!"

...

"Heh..." Yu as the two let out a small laugh "Shit..."

"It's okay" Chie smiled "Some other time..."

"Sure..." Yu smiled before placing a small kiss her lips "Where the hell did I throw my jacket?"

**OCTOBER 1/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Oh Yosuke-kun" Yukiko noted as the boy passed her

"Oh hey Yukiko-san" Yosuke smiled

"Shopping?" Yukiko asked

"No, just...got back from the hospital" Yosuke sighed "I went to see Ayane..."

"Oh...how...how is she?" Yukiko quietly asked

"No different from the last time..." Yosuke shrugged "She...umm...she's not getting any better"

"Yosuke-kun..." Yukiko muttered "I never found out...why do you...blame yourself?"

"Ayane told me she was in love with me" Yosuke said, stunning the girl "And I turned her down"

"O-Oh..." Yukiko gasped

"That was the last time I saw her..." Yosuke sighed "But I received a letter she wrote before she vanished...saying that she didn't blame me for rejecting her and that I can love whoever I want..."

...

"Yosuke-kun..." Yukiko gaped as she stared at boys defeated expression

"I...I don't know..." Yosuke sighed "After Saki and now this...I don't think I'll ev-Whoa! Y-Yukiko-san..."

"It's okay..." Yukiko said as she wrapped Yosuke in a hug

"Y-Yukiko...this isn't necessary" Yosuke gulped

"Oh...sorry" Yukiko apologized as she broke the hug

And then the two stared into each other' eyes...

"U-Uh, I'll see ya..." Yosuke muttered as he turned his head

"B-Bye" Yukiko nodded as he left, his cheeks as red as her blouse

**OCTOBER 2/ AIYA**

"It's...lonely" Daisuke muttered as he stared at the empty seat next to him, where Kou usually sat

"Order whatever you want Daisuke-kun, it's on the house" Aiya told him

"Thanks..." Daisuke smiled as he stared his chopsticks "Thanks..."

"Daisuke-kun..." Came the voice of Yumi as she entered the diner

"Oh hey, Yumi" Daisuke smiled

"A-Are you okay?" She questioned his expression

"Sure..." Daisuke muttered

"Is...Is this seat taken?" She asked as she pulled out the stool

_Kou's_ stool

...

"No..." He smiled "Sit down

**OCTOBER 3/ CEMETERY**

"Hey...dad" Kanji muttered to the tombstone engraved;

_HERE LIES _

_FUMIHIKO TATSUMI_

_BELOVED HUSBAND AND FATHER_

_1955 - 2000_

"So uh...I didn't tell you about the guys did I?" Kanji asked with a small chuckle "Yu-senpai is my best bud...he really taught me how to open up and be myself. Yosuke-senpai is a bit of a bastard but he means well..but uh...I lost someone recently...buddy of mine, Kou Ichijo...I uh...I didn't really know him well but he was our bud...and he's gone now. I...I...I've never really lost anyone 'part from you two. But...it sucks y'know? I'm gonna find the guy who did it...

There's another guy with us now...well...not a guy but...her name's Naoto...she...she's somethin' else hahaha...

Um, I kinda lost for words here...uh...hey dad?

...

I miss you..."

**OCTOBER 4/ SOUZAI DAIGAKU**

"What should I have...?" Rise wondered as she and Yu hung around "Heck, maybe our shop should do something like this. How about a ganmo kebab? Or a tofu croquette?"

"Well, if it isn't Rise-chan." A middle aged man greeted

"Ummm, you're the deputy mayor...right? Good afternoon..." Rise greeted back

"I heard the news! You know, about the upcoming film!" He smiled, confusing Rise "Hm? You haven't heard yet? You know Kanamin, right? Kanami Mashita! They're going to be filming nearby, right? I hope they stop by Inaba, too. Oh, I know! Why don't you ask?"

"Kanamin..." Rise muttered "I don't have anything to do with them anymore."

"But wait...how many are coming? We only have small bed-and-breakfasts around here..." He wondered "Got it! They can stay at the Amagi Inn! Alright, I need to go tell that manager guy I was just talking to!"

Rise was too stunned to question him as he departed, and noticed the approaching Inoue

"Oh, Rise-chan. Nice to see you" Inoue waved

"Inoue-san...what do you want today...?" Rise asked

I'm down here scouting film locations, so I thought I'd come see you." He stated "I wanted to hear your answer one more time, face to face...are you sure you're not coming back?"

...

"I..." Rise stated "I'm not going back..."

...

"I see...okay... I understand. Well, now I can focus on my new job." Inoue nodded "I signed up as Kanami Mashita's manager. Remember how we were talking about doing that movie? They picked Kanami as your replacement...we're going to sell Kanami. I have every confidence she'll be just as popular... no, even MORE popular than Risette."

"I-I see..." Rise muttered

"Although...Kanami is an ordinary girl. We have to _polish_ her so she sells..." Inoue sighed "But you had that spark...you learned fast, adapted well to new situations, had that smile that could be as strong or weak as you needed...and those acting skills of yours! You were like an old pro. You could have reached heights most girls could never dream of...that's what I think, anyway. So...I just had to hear it from your own mouth

...

Well, then... goodbye. Stay healthy, okay?"

And with that, he left

"What the heck... That's not fair... After he made me answer..." Rise muttered "He never told me any of that when we were still working together...acting skills...? Of course I have 'em. What the heck...? Telling me all that stuff now... It's too late...!

...

Hey...why...am I crying...? There's no reason to cry...there's nothing...to be sad about. Nothing...Senpai...I... I don't know why I'm crying..."

"Hey, it's okay, calm down" Yu state as he placed his hand on her shoulder

"I...I lost...everything...I don't know how... but... I lost everything...I'm scared...I'm sad...what's going on...? Senpai...please, stay here. Stay by...my side...Senpai...!"

...

"I can't be with you in that way Rise..." He told her "I can only be here for you as a friend"

"That's okay..." She smiled "I know...but Senpai...I have you...I have the others...I didn't lose everything...there are people who need me, right...?"

"Of course" Yu nodded

"I'm going home now. My head's all messed up..." She told him "I need to think it all over. About how I feel now. I don't want to lose anything more...Goodbye, Senpai..."

**OCTOBER 5/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE **

_"And now the weather...The week ended on a wet note as rain clouds moved into the area._

_As a result, a thick fog is expected to form in the Inaba region later tonight…"_

"More fog?" Motoko groaned

**MIDNIGHT/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"So...she lives" The Attendant laughed

"Thank god..." Shinya muttered

"You're not off the hook yet" Sho laughed as he pointed his blade at him "You're still in our debt"

...

"I...I..." Shinya gulped

"Don't worry" The Attendant smiled "As long as you serve us...they will live"

**OCTOBER 6/ SCHOOL GATES**

"Hey!" Chie greeted as they spotted Naoto "Feeling better?"

"Yes, thanks to all of you." Naoto smiled "I'd like to thank you once again for what happened."

"Don't mention it. But hey, your uniform…" Yosuke muttered, noticing Naoto was still wearing the boys uniform

"Huh? Ah… yes." Naoto nodded "After contemplating the matter, I went with what I've been wearing thus far. There's no need for you to…"

_"Hey, it's the Detective Prince."_

_"That's no Prince. I heard he's a she!"_

_"Huh!? Y-You serious!? If he's a she, then uh… O-Oh crap!"_

_"Aww…I'm kinda disappointed, but then again, there's something neat about it…"_

_"Yeah…If you look at it a certain way, doesn't she seem pretty cool?"_

"My, my…rumors spread so quickly." Naoto hummed

"Well rumors don't matter" Yu shrugged "We're on your side"

"Th-Thank you…" Naoto blushed "But it doesn't bother me at all. There's no need to worry on my behalf. So please treat me as you did before. That aside, I'd like to discuss the case with you all. We're dealing with a kidnap-and-murder case perpetrated by someone lurking in this very town. And it isn't over yet…let's go over the finer points after school."

**JUNES**

"I was in my room...looking for points where he may enter" Naoto stated to group as they sat in the foodcourt "I heard my door open and just as alarm bells sounded in my mind, someone grabbed me roughly from behind and covered my mouth. Immediately afterward, I was put into something like a sack and dragged across the ground."

"Wow, how could you remember all that?" Rise asked

"The culprit did not use chemicals to incapacitate me, and in my struggles, I managed to get a brief look at his face." Naoto told "I was panicking but I was desperate to gather as much information as I could..."

"No wonder you're an ace detective." Teddie admired

"That ain't something to be proud of. You are too damn calm about all this…" Kanji groaned

"He was definitely a man. Hoarse voice, average height, black hair, brown eyes, beard" Naoto listed

"Well that narrows it down" Yosuke sighed

"I was dragged outside and then felt an single impact, which I assume was me being lifted onto the back of a vehicle and afterward, I could feel myself plumetting which I assume was me being thrown into the TV. But the time from kidnapping to that point seemed too short...It was a matter of minutes." Naoto revealed

"So...you were thrown into the TV right away?" Chie questioned "W-Was there a TV right by the road or something?"

"Regrettably, my memory from there on is a blur…" Naoto sighed

"I see…but man… The killer broke into your home? That's just crazy." Yosuke muttered

"I finally understand why you all testified that you couldn't recall much of what happened." Naoto nodded "Such a bizarre experience, with mental and physical fatigue on top of it… It's only natural to be confused. And going by the surrounding circumstances, my kidnapping and everyone else's were near identical…there is no question that the culprit is the same in each case."

"So… everything makes sense now." Daisuke muttered "Minazuki isn't alone. Someone else is throwing people into the TV's"

"No wonder King Moron's death broke the pattern in so many ways…" Yosuke sighed

"Another thing is the man himself..." Naoto said "He seemed almost...apologetic."

"Huh?" Yu questioned

"He apologized before throwing me in...it wasn't mockery or satire either" Naoto stated "He seemed genuinely saddened as he did so..."

"So...do we tell the police about this?" Yumi questioned "That Minazuki isn't working alone?"

"The police won't readily concede that they made false charges…all the more so if the accused is a juvenile." Naoto sighed "In fact, the overwhelming sentiment within the police force is to end this case with Minazuki's eventual arrest."

"Even if there's another killer out there?!" Chie spat

"Those dickheads…" Kanji groaned "I had a feeling that would be the case. Not that I trusted 'em in the first place."

"But uh, Naoto…If you were that calm when it happened to you, couldn't you have, you know…" Yosuke muttered "I'm not saying you shoulda caught him, but isn't it kinda sad for an ace detective to go down that easily…?"

"U-Um…Um…to tell you the truth, I was really scared…" Naoto admitted "I-I'm sorry…"

"It can't be helped." Yukiko told her "None of us could resist the culprit, either. Don't forget, Naoto-kun is younger than us, and she's a girl."

"Oh, yeah, that's true. I keep forgetting when I see her talking like this." Yosuke nodded "You know, Naoto…"

"What is it?" She asked

"You got balls, for a girl." Yosuke winked

"H-Huh?!" Naoto blushed

"Way to go numbnuts" Daisuke groaned with a facepalm

"R-Regardless, I have no doubt this is not the end of these attacks" Naoto said "We can only watch and wait for him to make the next move…ut this is no longer a mere job, or someone else's affair. I want to know the truth of why we were targeted. Please allow me to join your effort."

"Of course" Yu nodded

"Thank you very much. I'll do my best, Leader." She smiled

"Since I'm the King of Geniuses, I knew it would work out this way…" Teddie smiled as he pulled something out "Ta-da! Nao-chan's glasses!"

"Th-Thank you…" She smile as she took them "They told me about you, Teddie. I can sympathize with your drive to find yourself. If I may help in any way, let me know."

"Wow…what a nice girl!" Teddie blushed

* * *

"Welcome to the Velvet Room" Igor greeted "Do not be alarmed, you are fast asleep in the real world"

"Oh..." Yu muttered before he looked around "It's different..."

Indeed, the Velvet room was no longer a limousine but a large, mostly empty room. The floor was the same shade of blue but there no walls or a ceiling, instead; where the floor ended was a vast endless cosmos with stars and planets as far as the eye could see. A blindfolded man sat at a piano with a woman with a microphone providing the music he usually heard within the room. Before him sat a couch with Igor with Margaret and another man he didn't recognize standing behind it

"Greetings" He bowed "I am Theodore. The Piano player is Nanashi and the singer is Belladonna"

"W-Why is it different?" Yu asked

"The Velvet Room reflects your inner-self" Margaret stated "It was originally a limousine to reflect your journey, but now it is a sea of infinity...it is like this for your Arcana has changed"

"What do you mean?" Yu asked

"Initially, your arcana was **The Fool**, representing an unprepared journey ahead of you" Margaret stated as she held up the Tarot card

"However, with the recent changes in your life, your Arcana is now **The World**" Theodore presented the card "The potential for the perfect union with the one power within the Universe...and that true happiness will be given to the world, sharing your experience and knowledge"

"Oh..." Yu muttered

"Well done...this is the turning point for you" Igor smiled "And now, with this change...your destiny is changed forever"


	19. Don't Rescue Anymore

**DON'T RESCUE ANYMORE**

"What do you mean?" Yu asked "_Changed forever_? How?"

"The details; I cannot divulge" Igor told him "You must wait until you experience them yourself"

"Aw come on..." Yu groaned

"He is the 48th person to make that statement" Nanashi called out

"Though you now possess The World, your ability of the Wild Card remains" Margaret stated "Making you-"

"The first to hold both" Nanashi stated

"I forgot how much he likes to interrupts..." Theodore sighed

"That is the 7th time you have made the statement" Nanashi said

"Now we must say farewell, until you come to visit once again" Igor smiled

"W-Wait!" Yu pleaded but he was already starting to fade away "Damn it! Why can't you guys everp-"

_GASP_

Shooting up on his futon, short of breath in a cold sweat, Yu awoke. His hazy eyes glanced over to the digital clock above the TV that read 5:08am

"Damn it..." Yu groaned as he wiped the sweat of his brow, his skin, clothing and hair soaked. Standing up, he threw his shirt off and made his way to the rest room. Glancing at the mirror, he observed his droopy face with bloodshot eyes. His long hair was stringy and rough. Turning on the tap, he dunked his head under the cold water, letting it pour over his head.

Turning his head back up, he dried himself off with a nearby towel and observed himself in the mirror

"And now I'm wide awake...great" Yu sighed as he returned to his room, observing the clock which was now at 5:13, he sighed as he removed the rest of his sweaty clothes, replacing them with fresh ones

Noting his futon was also covered in sweat, he sighed and rolled it up and put it away, sensing he wasn't getting any more sleep anyway. He groaned as he sat on his couch and stared blankly at the TV in front of him. Flipping it on, he groaned as he flicked through the morning weather reports before turning it off. He gazed out of the window, observing the pale blue sky poking through the clouds. Staring outside, he muttered the consideration of an early morning walk.

A few moments passed before he slipped on a pair of shoes and a jacket, grabbing his cellphone too just incase someone noticed he was missing and called to ask where he was. Carefully stepping down the stairs and quietly sliding the door open, he stepped out into the cold morning air.

Inaba had been mostly quiet during his stay, but this was the first time there really was nothing other than the cicada's chirping. His footsteps seemed to echo as he walked down the street, observing the roads that were emptier than usual. He continued to walk down the streets until he reached the shopping district. Walking past the closed stores, he stopped as he reached a certain point in the road. Just past Tatsumi textiles. A bunch of flowers were set up on the fence to the side. Along with a few cards of condolences. Yu looked at the spot. Where he had kneeled down and tried to save Kou

"It was right here..." Yu muttered

"Senpai?" A voice called out to him. Yu lifted his head and spotted the newest member of the investigation team

"Naoto?" Yu noted

"I see, I had no idea you were one for morning walks" Naoto said

"I'm not, but I couldn't sleep" He told her

"Oh, I see..." Naoto nodded "I'm not traditionally for them either, but it is the only time I get out of the estate without my grandfather's prying eyes over me"

"He must be worried" Yu said as Naoto walked by his side

"Indeed..." Naoto muttered "He seeks my protection, my disappearance led to bad memories of my parent's death for him..."

"Oh..." Yu mumbled "I...uh, can't say I understand what that's like"

"So I take it your parents are still..." Naoto led on

"Yeah, but I haven't seen my dad in a while" He said, confusing her "Divorce..."

"Oh...my condolences" Naoto apologized

"Not your fault" Yu chuckled before he stared at the ground once again "It was right here y'know...Kou died...right here"

"Yes, I was one of the officers who reported to the scene" Naoto told "Seeing the dead body of a boy around my age...it was not a pleasent sight"

...

"Let's change the subject" Yu sighed "How are you feeling?"

"Much better, I've completely recovered" Naoto smiled "That being said...I would like to talk to you after school about something"

"Oh sure" Yu nodded before checking his watch "Almost 6am..."

"It is? Curses, I must return" Naoto sighed "Grandfather checks, you see..."

"It's okay, I should be heading back too" Yu smiled "See ya Naoto"

**OCTOBER 7/ AFTERNOON/ YASO-INABA HIGH SCHOOL**

"Do you have time after school today?" Naoto asked

"Did something happen?" Chie questioned

"No…rather, I'd like to have a doctor examine Teddie." Naoto told them

"A doctor?" Yosuke echoed

"You mean a vet?" Yukiko asked

"The normal kind, actually." Naoto stated "If you're free, I've scheduled a checkup for him after school today. A thorough physical examination might be a good first step in figuring out what Teddie is. And I thought it might be a good idea for the rest of us to get checkups as well.

We should see if the fog over there or the power we've gained have had any negative effects on our health. Since you all have been active on the other side far longer than I have, you should definitely be examined. "

"Negative effects!? D-Don't drop scary stuff on us like it's nothing…" Yosuke gulped "Yeah…I never even thought about that."

"I've arranged to have Kanji-kun, Rise-san, Daisuke-san and Yumi-kun looked at as well." Naoto said "An examination on Labrys-san will not be nessacery for obvious reasons"

"Wow, you're on the ball about all this…" Chie said in awe "Are you sure you're not an adult?"

"Her height's a big giveaway, though." Yosuke muttered

**INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL**

"That was just a regular check up" Yosuke complained

"I can't believe I'm back in this hospital so soon..." Yumi muttered sadly

"I'm not too thrilled either...Ayane's room is just on the next floor" Yosuke sighed

"I was kinda looking forward to getting into some gigantic machine and being spun around." Kanji complained

"Was there really a point to this? The doctors looked confused too…" Rise sighed

"Oh, they're back." Yukiko observed the return of Naoto and Teddie

"I'm very sorry for the wait." Naoto apologized

"I'm bear-y sorry for the wait." Teddie echod

"So did they find out anything about Teddie?" Yosuke asked

"They did indeed…they found out that they can't tell anything about him." Naoto sighed "I even had them take an X-Ray, but nothing came up on it. No matter how many times they tried, it would always be too blurry to read. A visual examination and standard palpations indicated that he seems perfectly normal. Since the machine could be malfunctioning, they told me to try another hospital if we're still worried about him. I felt bad for making them go through all this…"

"So, he _is_ different…" Yukiko muttered

"Oh my, what should I do?" Teddie asked "They took a look at everything inside me."

"She just said they couldn't see anything on the X-Ray, you dork." Chie grumbled

"But at least they didn't find anything wrong with him, right?" Kanji shrugged "Man, we know about as much about Teddie as we do those Personas and Shadows…"

"Oh yeah, I tried looking them up at the library and the net" Yosuke stated "Persona means something like, another personality. And I think they listed Shadow under the related terms…"

"Shadows are Shadows…I think they're something that comes out of people…um, I can't really explain…" Teddie whined

"I performed my own research after the incident." Naoto stated "Persona and Shadow are common psychological terms. Of course, the ones we are familiar with don't quite fit those definitions. This is what was written in an unofficial project document that I happened to come across, written by a woman named Yukino Mayuzumi. A Shadow is suppressed power, and when controlled by one's ego, it becomes a Persona…"

"It becomes a Persona…? What, does that mean they're basically the same thing? Then again, all those Shadows we beat the shit out of did turn into Personas…" Kanji groaned "Ahh, who cares about the details…it doesn't' matter what they are. If they get in our way, I'll crush 'em."

"Still, I couldn't find any information on how they're related to the other world." Naoto sighed

"There's so much stuff about us that we don't have a clue about…" Rise groaned

"There's some things we do know, though. Hmhmm… I got a bunch of awesome data with me." Teddie smiled as he pulled out a sheet of paper "It's kinda embarrassing that I'm the only one who had personal details shown to the world, so…nowadays, information wants to be free! Therefore, I'll break the ice by announcing the results of everyone's physical exams!"

"Wha-!? No you won't! Give 'em to me, NOW!" Chie demanded

"Ooooh…first place in the _shortest legs division_ is…huh, who woulda guessed!?" Teddie gaped

"I-It's not me, is it!? Hey, what kinda things did they examine, anyway!?" Yosuke gaped "Look..if you're gonna blab it all…you might as well tell us the girls' measurements!"

"WHAT!? Are you a complete and utter moron!?" Chie screamed

"Sure, go right ahead. My profile's been public knowledge for ages." Rise shrugged "Oh, but my bust size is 2cm smaller than they print. My agency insisted."

"N-No! Don't say mine!" Yukiko yelped

"O-Or mine!" Yumi gasped

"Aww, I bet guys won't care what size you are, Senpai. And having modestly sized breasts like yours would definitely make it easier to wear a kimono." Rise giggled as she took the sheet of paper

"Wh-What…!?" Yukiko gasped

"Oh yeah, Naoto-kun's is in here too, huh? Umm, let's see…Naoto-kun's is…" Rise read "W-What?! N-Naoto, it says you're stacked!"

"W-What?!" Kanji yelped

"A-Anyway!" Naoto stuttered as she snatched the paper back "The important thing is that according to the examination results, nothing's wrong with our health! So we won't be needing these anymore! I'm going to go shred them!"

"Uhhh…well, thank goodness everyone's healthy!" Yosuke gulped, trying to tilt his head at an angle to read the sheet

"Y-You're right! Let's go home!" Chie yelped

"Are you curious Kanji?" Daisuke asked

"About what?" He asked back

"Naoto...big melons or not?" Daisuke questioned

"W-What?! I didn't look at her tits, I swear!" Kanji shouted

...

"Okay" Daisuke nodded

"After all that...they didn't find out anything about me" Teddie said sadly "I wonder...what am I...really?"

"We'll find out...together" Yu smiled

"S-Sensei!" Teddie muttered with tears in his eyes

"Hey, if you guys don't hurry up, we'll leave you behind!" Yosuke called

**OCTOBER 8**

"Oh good morning Senpai" Naoto greeted as Yu appeared at the school gates, their umbrella's sheilding them from the rain "Exams start next Friday, but I am just not in the mood for schoolwork. The true killer is someone else…we're the only ones who know that. If we don't act, the case will grind to a halt."

"I can't study, either." Yu sighed

"That isn't good. If your grades drop, Dojima-san may suspect something is going on." Naoto explained "Please, do your best on the tests for the sake of the case. Anyway, we can only wait for the culprit to make his move. We must not forget to check the Midnight Channel, too. This is a crucial moment."

**OCTOBER 9**

"This is a problem, Minazuki's acomplice is an adept hacker..." Katsuya sighed

"How do you know?" Naoto questioned

"Our files were hacked back in July" Katsuya stated "We first believe it was Minazuki, but-"

"Umm...did this hack occur on the evening of July 2?" Naoto gulped

"Y-Yes, how did you..." Katsuya muttered

"Ah...I'm afraid t-that was...me" Naoto gulped

"W-What?!" Katsuya gasped

"I-I discovered your affiliation with the Kirijo Group and I searched their files to investigate further" Naoto admitted

"I-I see..." Katsuya groaned "Y-You know...it was that hack that alerted us and told us to prepare...in a way, it was a good thing, but how did you discover my association with the Kirijo's?"

"Overheard phonecall..." Naoto said with a small smile

"I see..." Katsuya hummed "Well...I should probably alert Lady Kirijo that we're not dealing with a computer hacker"

"Again...my apologies" Naoto awkwardly chuckled

**OCTOBER 10/ SCHOOL ROOF**

"Maybe I should tie it in a ponytail..." Yu stated as he examined the long mane of hair

"You have more hair than me..." Chie muttered as she examined a lock of it "It's gonna be longer than Yukiko's soon..."

"It only goes down to my shoulders" Yu chuckled

"Maybe I should grow mine out..." Chie muttered

"Do you want to grow yours out?" Yu asked

"Well...not really" Chie sighed "It's just...my hair isn't really feminine"

"How?" Yu asked as he examined it "I find it cute..."

"That makes me feel like a little girl" Chie pouted before blushing "But...I'm guess I'm happy that you think I'm cute"

"Oh I find you a lot of things" Yu chuckled as he kissed her on her cheek

"Geez, not at school!" Chie blushed furiously

**OCTOBER 11/ JUNES FOOD COURT**

"Oh, hi Nanako-chan, hi Teddie" Chie greeted as the group approached the two who were sitting at a large table

"Hey, greetings to you." Teddie waved

"Greetings to you." Nanko echoed with a giggle

"Looks like you're having fun." Yukiko smiled

"Yo." Kanji greeted

"Wow, everyone's here." Rise noted

"So many people!" Nanako said in awe

"Why did everyone come here?" Teddie sasked

"Exam study group!" Yosuke sighed "Times like these, I'm jealous of Teddie…"

"Come on now. Let's start with proving the trigonometric identities." Yukiko stated as they all took their seats

"Argh…jumping straight into math" Chie groaned

"Ours is the section on trig functions, right?" Rise questioned "The one where we find the area of a triangle given two sides and-"

"Huh? You find the area of a triangle with…you know, that thing." Kanji muttered "Uhh, base by height by 2?"

"If you don't mind, shall I teach you?" Naoto suggested

"Oh? Are you as smart as I thought? Could you uh…lend me a hand too…?" Yosuke asked

"Oh, um…I wouldn't know where to begin with second-year subjects." Naoto stated

"Aww…what's up with that? Useless after all…" Yosuke groaned

"D-Don't call me useless!" Naoto snapped

"You're gonna get hit one of these days" Chie glared

"Hehehe…I think I've figured out what buttons to push to get Naoto-kun riled up." Yosuke chuckled "You're pretty cute when you're angry."

"Wh-What are you talking about!?" Naoto blushed

"That's it, I quit. This just ain't my thing…" Kanji groaned "The hell with the exams. 's time for my animal crackers."

"Ooh, can I have some too? I wanna find the penguin!" Rise squeed

"Hands off the penguin! It's mine!" Kanji shouted

"Forget it. I can't think…" Kanji sighed

"Find the diameter of y...the hell does that mean?!" Labrys shouted as she examined the book

"Teddie said he doesn't know who he is. That's so weird." Nanako echoed to the group

"My life on this side is really fun." Teddie said with a sad smiled "But the more I feel that way, the more I want to know who I really am…I've surfed the net, read manga, watched TV…I even went to a place called the libeary, but I still can't find anything about me…"

"Dude, I'd be surprised if you did." Yosuke shrugged

"Still, I'm starting to get an idea…" Teddie stated

"An idea?" Yukiko asked

"Whoa, isn't this your first time sharing a theory about yourself!?" Chie asked

"I lived in that other world, that world was my reality" Teddie said "But now, I have a feeling that it was born from the minds of people on this side…and over in that place filled with Shadows, I think I was some sort of special being…"

"A _special being_?" Yosuke questioned

"I don't remember anything from back then, though…" Teddie sighed "Maybe it's that _amnesia_ thing I read about in a book the other day."

"It's true…there are some aspects of the other world that make it seem as though it's rooted in human thoughts. Still, there's no point in applying the principles of logic and deduction to a place like that…but the fact that you existed in such a world from the beginning adds credibility to your theory. There is little doubt that you are a _special being_ on the other side." Naoto informed "If you yourself know nothing about it, perhaps it's true that part of your memory is missing. Tell me, what is the earliest memory you can call to mind?"

"It's from a while ago. I've always lived there, as far as I could tell." Teddie explained "Then it started to get noisy, so when I happened to bump into Sensei and Yosuke, I asked them to do something about it…"

"I see…if you've always been on that side, you'd have no sense of time or days" Naoto pondered

"Oops, Nanako-chan is completely in the dark on this!" Chie said, drawing attention to the young, confused girl "I'm sorry, Nanako-chan. We didn't mean to leave you out…"

"Hey…I think Teddie must be a king." Nanako suggested "I read in a story that a king was all alone inside a forest because of a bad guy's curse. Isn't that what happened to you, Teddie?"

"A King…well! When you put it that way, it sounds about right" Teddie laughed

"Teddie…? A King…?" Yukiko laughed "I can see him wearing a cape…"

"Sheesh, Yukiko…you go into laughing fits in front of anyone now…" Chie groaned

"Can we…not talk about Teddie being a King…?" Kanji grumbled

"Hm? What's with that face…?" Yosuke asked

"Teddie really was a King." Teddie smiled "There were all these other Kings too, and we all-"

"H-Hey, he's talking about what happened at the club!" Chie gasped "Quiet, you! Not in front of Nanako-chan!"

...

"Am I really a King?" Teddie asked

"Maybe so." Yu chuckled

"Mwahaha! If I am a King, I'll get to smooch girls every day!" Teddie laughed "I have this fuzzy feeling that I'll find out sooner or later with your help, Sensei."

**OCTOBER 12**

"I was thinkin' 'bout what Teddie said yesterday" Labrys said "Not 'nowing who is...even if it was just for a 'lil bit, I knew exactly what he was going through..."

"Oh yeah...your memories were wiped back when you were in the TV world" Yu recalled

"Maybe Ted's the same...maybe he lost his memories in there" Labrys muttered "I really wanna help him but I don't know where to start"

"None of us do" Yu shamefully admitted "Teddie is the only one who can really find out who he is...we'll help him whatever way we can..."

**OCTOBER 13/ LIBRARY**

"This sucks" Kanji growled

"Can't study?" Yu asked

"_You_ can?" Kanji grumbled

"So...while we're here...Naoto" Yu said out of the blue

"W-What about her?" Kanji gulped as a red hue settled on his cheeks

"Do you like her?" Yu asked, almost causing Kanji to explode

"W-W-W-W-W-What?!" Kanji shouted

"Dude, library, keep it down" Yu told him

"S-Sorry..." Kanji apologized "But..w-what'd you mean..._like_?"

"Like I like Chie" Yu bluntly said

"G-Gah!" Kanji gulped "I...I..."

And then he finally gave up and sighed

"I dunno...maybe?" Kanji groaned "Just...drop it for now, okay?"

**OCTOBER 14/ PATH TO SCHOOL**

"Ugh..." Chie groaned "Oh, morning…"

"Hey..." Yu muttered "You look...beat"

"Hey…how much studying did you get done after we met up?" Chie questioned "Actually…have you studied at all?"

"What about you?" Yu asked

"Ahahahahahaha! Me?…How much did you think I would study?" Chie screamed "Arrrgh! If I'm gonna die, at least I'll go down fighting! Just like Ryoma Sakamoto!…Wait, was that Shinsengumi…?"

**OCTOBER 16/ 2 DAYS LATER/ JUNES FOODCOURT**

"It's getting to be a custom for us to meet up like this." Yosuke sighed "But that aside, can I borrow your notes?"

"Borrowing notes is getting to be a custom too…" Chie noted "Alright, let's get started…but first, I want a melon soda."

"Is that your way of saying you'll lend me your notes if I buy you a melon soda…?" Yosuke glared

"Could be." Chie chuckled

"Hmhm, Yosuke-san and Chie-san seem to get along well. Why don't you two date?" Rise suggested

"Never!" Chie snapped

"That was quick…!" Yosuke gaped

"Uh, hello?" Yu waved "It's not as if me and Chie have been going out for four months or anything"

"And even if she wasn't together with Yu, I still wouldn't date her!" Yosuke shouted

"W-What?! Hey!" Chie snapped

"Nothin' personal, you're just not my type" Yosuke shrugged

"Go and get me that melon soda so I can shove it up your-" Chie growled

"Who would you date then?" Labrys asked

"I dunno...someone like Yukiko-san I guess" Yosuke said

"M-Me?" She stuttered

"Well yeah...I mean, who wouldn't date you?" Yosuke stated

"O-Oh..." Yukiko blushed

"Daisuke-kun, how about you?" Rise asked "Would you date Yumi-chan?"

"I-I'm not really big into relationships..." Daisuke stated

"M-Me either" Yumi blushed

"You too, Naoto! You could go out with Kanji!" Rise smiled

"Please, stop it!" Naoto pleaded

"Aww, how cute." Rise smiled "Hey, Senpai…wouldn't Kanji and Naoto make a good couple?"

"That's their business, not mine" Yu stated

"Y-Yes, of course not. Kanji-kun is an interesting sort, but…" Naoto listed

"Hey, I bet you're just asking these questions because you want Yu-kun all'ta youse'lf!" Labrys called

"N-No!" She denied

"Hey, back off sister, he's mine!" Chie snapped as pointed at Yu

"H-Hey, that's not fair!" Rise shouted "You don't have to rub it in!"

"Oh god..." Yu muttered as he sunk under the table

"Oh you gotta be kidding me!" Yosuke squeed "Are we gonna see an actual catfight?!"

"SHUT UP!" Chie and Rise screamed at him

**OCTOBER 20/ 4 DAYS LATER/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"Finally done..." Yu sighed as he walked into his home, noticing it was empty

"I'm bac-oh, you're home" Nanako noted as she stepped through the door

"Hey, looks I just beat you" Yu smiled

"There was a letter in the mailbox for you" Nanako said as she handed him a letter addressed to him

"To me?" Yu said as he opened it up. It was short letter, only one sentence, but the message could not be more clear...

_stop, please don't rescue anymore_

**GAS STATION**

"I can't believe you made me threaten him" Shinya growled

"Sending a letter is hardly threatening" The Attendant mocked "Besides...he'll obviously do the opposite of the instructed"

"Kids ignoring their parents is just natural..." Sho scoffed

"You won't harm my son!" Shinya snapped

"We won't...as long as you obey us" The Attendant glared, his eyes changing to red and yellow... "Lest you wish to go the way of your mistress..."

"How dare you!" Shinya roared

"Do not forget your place" The Attendant glared "You are a pawn..."

**OCTOBER 21/ SCHOOL ROOF**

"_dont rescue anymore_…is this a warning?" Naoto questioned as she observed the letter

"No punctuation or capitalization…what a cliché." Chie groaned

"Ain't this just a prank? The kinda stuff that only happens in the movies?" Kanji asked

"Did you show this to your uncle?" Yosuke asked

"I don't plan to." Yu sighed "He'd just worry"

Senpai… Dojima-san is trustworthy, but it may be best to keep this to ourselves. He will ask why you received such a letter, and if he were to put you under surveillance, our hands would be tied. If this letter is real, what's most important isn't what it says…it's the fact that it was delivered to the Dojima residence, addressed directly to you." Naoto explained "This means the culprit knows in great detail who has been interfering with his crimes…and of all of us, he chose to deliver his message to the Dojima residence, home of a police detective. I'd have this letter checked at a crime lab if I could…but even then, I doubt they'd find anything. The text is a warning, while the subtext expresses the culprit's confidence that we can't use it to pinpoint his identity"

"So it's useless to tell the police…in fact, that would make things worse." Chie sighed

"Cross your fingers it's just a prank…" Yosuke suggested

"I think the chances of that are slim…this message is too specific, too perfect to be a prank." Yukiko noted "But how could the killer know so much about us? Could he be watching us from somewhere…?"

"Teddie's been saying for a while that when we're over there, he senses someone watching us…" Yosuke said "Wait…every time we went to the other side to rescue someone, did we end up on the Midnight Channel ourselves…?"

"I-I dunno…it seems like no one else knows what we're doing." Chie stated "I haven't heard any rumors about us at school. Even the people who I know check that channel haven't said anything…the only gossip I heard was about the people who disappeared."

"I see… Come to think of it, how the Midnight Channel works is still a mystery…" Yosuke groaned "I thought we had it figured it out but then that whole G1 Grand Prix happened..."

"Let's put aside for now the matter of what that world truly is. There's too little data to go on.

For now, we need to keep in mind that the culprit knows who we are…" Naoto told them "As long as we're all aware of that, it will be enough for now."

"Yeah…guess there's no use thinking about stuff we can't understand." Yosuke sighed "Freaking out over speculation is just what the killer wants us to do…right?"

"Yeah...I think we'll just have to wait until the situation changes" Yu said

"All right." Chie nodded "Mind if I change the subject, then? The Culture Festival's just around the corner. What's our class doing again?"

"Oh yeah, it hasn't been decided yet, huh?" Yosuke noted

"I heard we'll be voting on it soon…but aren't they still gathering ideas?" Yukiko questioned

"Whoa…I think Yosuke just got hit with a bolt of inspiration…" Chie noted as the boy smiled "Whatever it is, it'll be out there. I'd bet my lunch on it."

"Hey Senpai, have you decided who you'll be going around the campus with during the festival?" Rise asked "My schedule's still wide open, you lucky guy!"

"I will drop you!" Chie shouted

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"That's weird..." Yu muttered

"What is?" Yosuke asked

"That weird guy in the suit and glasses has been staring at me for the last five minutes" Yu noted "I'm gonna go-"

"Dude, no!" Yosuke tried to stop him "You don't mess with a Men in Black! It's just tempting fate"

"Excuse me, I notice you've been staring at me..." Yu said to the man "Can I help you with something?"

"You are Yu Narukami, correct?" He asked

"Yes!"

"Don't tell him your name!" Yosuke shouted

"Do you know about luminol reactions? What part of the body do you use to test DNA?

What's the best way to obtain someone's email address? What ten things can you learn from footprints?" He asked

"Huh?!" Yosuke cried

"Luminol reactions-" Yu began to list and with his unmatched Knowledge, he answered every challenge smoothly and easily

"I see, I see…you are quite an interesting young man." The Man in Black stated "Do you know Naoto-sama…oh, er…you know a detective by the name of Naoto Shirogane, correct…?"

"Uh-huh" Yu nodded

"Yes, I know you know him. Deliver this to him. He will understand." The man in black said as he handed Yu a card "Good day, then…"

"What was that about?" Yosuke questioned

...

"Yes sir, I met him..." The Man in the black said over the phone "You were right sir...the resemblance is uncanny, he is definitely Shinya Narukami's son..."

_"Thank you" Naoto's Grandfather sighed "Naoto appears to trust him...so this test is for him too"_

**OCTOBER 22/ SCHOOL**

"Well, as you all know, next week is the Culture Festival." The Male class rep stated "And as you also know, we still haven't decided what our class is going to do for it...you guys don't care, do you?"

"We're going to decide based on the suggestions we have so far. Please vote for one of them. Here they are…" The female class rep said as she read a list "Break area…Video room…and Study room."

"Wow…sounds like whatever we pick, we don't need to put any effort into it. Talk about lack of motivation…" A student groaned

"Yeah, but the easier the better, right…?" Another sighed

"Oh, one more. um…" The female class rep read "Group date café."

"Heeey, who put in a suggestion like that?" Yosuke chuckled "Was it you, Chie?

"Yeah right! Why would I do such a thing!?" She spluttered

"What's…a group date café?" Yukiko asked

"Who knows…but I doubt anyone will vote for it. Our class is actually a pretty serious bunch." Chie shrugged

"Yeah, it's just a joke idea. You gotta have one weird one mixed in, y'know?" Yosuke laughed

"Ugh, figures!" Chie groaned

"We'll be passing around the vote sheet. Just circle one of the suggestions." The female rep stated

* * *

"Alright, time to count the votes." The male rep sighed "Uhh, the first vote is…group date café. Second vote… group date café. H-Huh? Seriously? Third vote… video room. Fourth vote… group date café. Group date café, group date café, study room, group date café…all of the votes have been counted…the group date café is in first?!"

"Wha-1st place?! What are we gonna do?!" Yosuke yelped

"Not gonna lie, I'm very tempted to punch you right now" Yu growled

"Don't ask me! This is your fault!" Chie snapped "I do wonder, though. Do all those people who voted for it realize they have to run it themselves…?"

"I've never been on a group date before, so I was a little curious…" Yukiko said

"What the-You voted for it!?" Chie shrieked

"Yeah… I thought it would be sad if no one voted for it." Yukiko shrugged

"But Yosuke's the one behind it…" She galred

"H-Hey! It wasn't just me! It came in 1st place! The public agrees!" Yosuke defended

"Well, since the majority rules, we'll be doing the group date café." The male rep said "But what does that even mean…? Is it like speed dating? Can we really pull this off? You'd all better pitch in on this."

"Actually…would the teachers be okay with this?" The student asked

"Dude, how could Kashiwagi say no?" Another stated

"Ms. Kashiwagi is busy getting ready for those two notorious pageants. That's why she's leaving it up to us students to decide what to do." The rep sighed

"Yeah, right! She just dumped it on our laps 'cause she didn't want to bother!" An appalled student spat

"G-Group date café…? Are we going to get any customers with this?" A worried student complained

"Seriously, what IS a group date café? I voted for it and I didn't even know." A disinterested one sighed

"How the heck's this gonna turn out…?" Chie groaned

"You did this..." Yu pointed at Yosuke "Yoooouuuuu..."

**HALLWAY**

"What is this?" Naoto asked as Yu handed her the card

"He said you'd understand" Yu shrugged

"What's that supposed to mean…?" Naoto muttered as she flipped the card over "Excuse me… but could you please accompany me for a brief period…? I'd like to hear more about what transpired when you were given this card. Please, it won't take long."

**SAMEGAWA RIVER BANK**

"I apologize, I wanted to talk someplace quiet" Naoto said as she and Yu sat under the foyer "What sort of person gave this to you?"

"A man who knew I knew you." Yu stated

"Which means…it's possible that he's been snooping around, gathering information on you or me…or even the case." Naoto pondered "The man must also know you as well. He wouldn't have entrusted the delivery to anyone he didn't know…but this is a small town… He could easily have looked up my address. Why go to the trouble of giving the letter to you… Intriguing. Is he involved with this case? Or another case altogether…? If it's me he's after, he could be anyone

...

Oh, I'll keep the card. The man is most likely still here in Inaba. I cannot drag you further into this."

"Huh?" Yu questioned "I can't back out now!"

"Huh…? Err, well… It's good to know you're worried about me, but…" Naoto blushed "I'm sorry, I seem to have a tin ear for other people's feelings…Yosuke-san told me so before. I'll look into this card and report my findings to you. So…don't worry about me. As our leader…I know that you have a lot on your shoulders, so…while we are here, why don't we chat a little?

Ah yes, there was something I wanted to ask you…"

"Hey, Naoto...do you feel it too?" Yu asked "I feel this weird..."

"Connection?!" Naoto gasped "You feel it too?"

"Yeah, I mean, it's nothing romanitc, but..." Yu muttered

"Indeed...it's more platonic" Naoto said "Grandfather revealed that he some relation with a family member of yours...perhaps it's something of that value"

"Maybe he worked alongside _my _grandfather, Raidou..." Yu muttered

"R-Raidou? Raidou Kuzonoha?!" Naoto gasped "Unbelievable! If that's true, then my family is blessed to have worked alongside yours!"

**OCTOBER 23/ HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"Senpai...I thought about it." Rise stated "Why my mind just went blank when I heard about Kanami...I mean, I ran away from showbiz because I was tired of being an idol. So I shouldn't have any problems and yet...I felt so angry about it...why do you think that is...?"

"I think maybe...you've realized you _are _Risette after all" Yu said to her

"Yeah... You know all along, huh...?" Rise giggled "But really...that's how it was. Risette's name in lights... Idolized by the masses...that was _me_, too...I didn't want to lose that _me_...there's no way to become someone else. I ran away from my plain, gloomy self...then I ran away from my idol self...right now I'm the homicide detective self, I guess? I would've run away from that as well, if I didn't realize...I've been trying to become how I wanted to be. I pick a role... When I'm through with it, I continue chasing the _real me_ by picking another role when in fact those roles are all _me_. I don't want to run away anymore. I don't want to search somewhere else for myself. I'm gonna hang in there...as the complete me

...

I'm glad I came to this town. I'm glad to have met you, and the others too! Let's go home, Senpai!"

**OCTOBER 24/ SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"As you can see, nothing is written on it. It's just a plain white card." Naoto said as she presented the card Yu handed her the other day "But it does feel a bit stiff, given its thinness…without any indication of its contents, however, I have no idea who sent it. I'd chalk it up as a prank."

"That's no fun." Yu smiled

"Hahaha. One would expect there to be more." Naoto laughed with a child-like smile but was cut off as her cell phone began ringing "Ah, excuse me...Yes, it's me. Ahh, Yakushiji-san. What's the matter? A thief…? In the Shirogane estate? Yes… Yes… I see.

I don't keep anything in that room that I'd miss terribly. You have already reported this to the police, I assume? Then I'll leave the rest to you. As long as Grampa is safe, it doesn't matter. I can't take my eyes off this case yet."

"What's wrong?" Yu asked as she hung up

"Oh… Sorry. You heard, didn't you…?" Naoto asked with an uncomfortable link "That was from Yakushihi…my Grampa's secretary…It appears someone has broken into the Shirogane estate. My room was targeted, and he wanted to know if I could think of any particular item the thief might have been after. Several items pertaining to me were also stolen from Grampa's inventory.I don't know about those, but my belongings aren't of any particular value, so…"

"That card…?" Yu asked

"Yes, that's precisely what I was thinking…" Naoto nodded "Regardless, you don't have to worry about me. We both have more pressing matters to attend to. I'm not sure how to react to you… err… worrying about me…"

"I can't help it, it looks like you're being targeted..." Yu stated, causing Naoto to blush

**OCTOBER 25/ SHOE LOCKERS**

"Another card?" Yu asked as Naoto pulled it out of her locker

"This was in my shoe locker..thought so too, at first…but it seems that's not the case.

This time, the sender's name is clearly written..." Naoto said, looking at the letter intently. "Judging by the name and the handwriting, the sender is a woman. She thoughtfully provided her year and class. When one factors in the heart-shaped seal as well, it's hard to imagine that this is related to my job in any way. In other words… there is no need to read it. I apologize. I wasted your time with this misleading…a sealed letter at a time like this…"

"What will you do with it?" Yu asked

"I cannot dispose of it on school premises, of couse…I'll take it home and feed it to the shredder." Naoto said bluntly "Whether the sender is male or female, I have no intention of responding. I have no time to be dilly-dallying with callow love affairs…I assume the same is true for you?"

"Well...I _do _have a girlfriend" Yu said

"Hmm well...saying they love me without even knowing me… ludicrous…let's go." Naoto sighed "Would you like to stop somewhere on the way? There are still some questions I have regarding the murders."

**OCTOBER 26/ SCHOOL GATES**

"Oh, morning" Yukiko greeted "he Culture Festival is just around the corner. Let's all do our best to prepare for it."

"Okay." Yu nodded

"Our class was late on deciding what to do, and Ms. Kashiwagi has been very busy, right? So, we need to pick up the slack and make sure we do a good job!" Yukiko smiled "Oh! I'm not interested in the _blind date_ part! Understand!? I-I'm not, okay!?"

**HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"Look! That line over there is the shopping district." Rise pointed "That's...us. Haha, we're so small...I need to remember that...Senpai...I've made up my mind about something. I'm thinking of going back into showbiz this spring."

"You are?" Yu questioned

"I am Risette, after all..." She laughed "And when I consider it that way, I think I can have more fun working. I know how hard it is for a star to make a comeback after an entire year's absence...but even then, I want to start over from the beginning. Do you remember the fan who gave me that letter? And my old manager, Inoue-san...from my family, everyone, you...and for myself. I won't run away... I won't try to be someone I'm not. The many Rises inside of me...I want to cherish them. I quit thinking about such stupid things! I mean, in reality, there's no such thing as a real me or a fake me. As long as you know what you really want to do, no matter how hard it is, you'll be okay...I can do it!"

_CLINK_

_**RISE'S STRONG WILL THAT ALLOWED HER TO ACCEPT AND OVERCOME HER WEAKNESS HAS AWAKENED HER HEART'S TRUE POWER! RISE'S PERSONA HAS BEEN REBORN! HIMIKO HAS TRANSFIGURED INTO KANZEON!**_

"This means...my powers have changed...?" Rise said in awe "I see...I've become a little stronger. Thanks to you... being with me...I want find lots of different _me's _and I want to get stronger so instead of running away from them, I'll welcome them with open arms. I was relying on you, but... I want to be able to stand on my own two feet. Thank you, Senpai! I love you!"

"Girlfriend" He reminded her "Chie..."

"Yeah...yeah I know" Rise pouted

**OCTOBER 27/ SCHOOL HALLWAY**

"_The Miss Yasogami High Pageant_..." Yu read off the bulletin board, alongside a crowd

"Ugh… On top of planning it, Kashiwagi's gonna be in it…?" A student groaned

"So that's why she agreed to plan this event…" Another groaned

The name Noriko Kashiwagi was indeed on the entry list…along with a list of familiar names

_"Yukiko Amagi"_

_"Chie Satonaka"_

_"Rise Kujikawa"_

_"Naoto Shirogane"_

_"Yumi Ozawa"_

_"Hanako Ohtani"_

"One, two… Wow, there's a lot of signups here. I'm surprised so many people took an interest."

"Whoa, Rise Kujikawa!? Seriously? Oh man, trust a celebrity to kill the fun of it all…"

"I bet she'll draw a huge crowd."

"If this was any other year, she'd win for sure…now she's up against Risette!"

"It's gonna be a Culture Festival to remember…"

"Huh? Risette's entering!? She's gonna take part in something like this!? Maybe I better think more seriously about saving a seat…"

"Look, Chie's entering too. She's actually pretty close to my type."

"Actually, I hear she has a lot of secret admirers."

"Naoto's that boyish…girlish…whatever, right? You know, she's, uh…pretty cute, hehehe."

"Dude, you sound like a pervo when you laugh like that…b-but, to be honest…I think she's cute, too… Hehehe."

...

"Yo" Yosuke greeted as he appeared "Are you free for lunch? I dunno why, but Chie asked us to come to the roof. She looked pretty serious…I wonder if something's happened. Oh, and Kanji's coming, too."

...

"You are gonna die, you know that right?" Yu asked

**SCHOOL ROOF**

"You better have a damn good explanation for this!" Chie roared

"F-For what?" Yosuke gaped

"The beauty pageant! You wrote down our names without telling us, didn't you!?" Chie snapped

"N-No! It wasn't me! Why do you automatically blame me!?" Yosuke defended "I-I mean, if you don't wanna do it, you just say no, right? Like it was just a joke."

"We wouldn't be so pissed if we could do that!" Chie continued to shout "With Kashiwagi planning this year's event, even those who got entered by other people can't back out!"

"Seriously? Must've been something in the fine print I overlooked…" Yosuke muttered

"So it was you!" Chie pointed

"Oh crap…!" Yosuke gulped

"Hey…do you want us to take part in the beauty pageant?" Rise asked

"W-Well yeah." Yosuke nodded "I mean, you guys know how popular Yukiko is here. And on top of that, we have an idol and a Detective Prince. What's the point of having a beauty pageant if all these incredible heroines aren't going to take part!?"

"Then why am I in, and why isn't Labrys-san?" Chie shouted

"Labrys is a robot!" Yosuke shouted "And you...well..."

...

"Well, excuuuse me for not fitting in!" Chie shouted

"Hey, you want them to be in it too, don'tcha, Kanji!?" Yosuke asked

"Huh…? I ain't interested in that stuff…" Kanji scoffed

"Naoto-kun…Kanji-kun says that he really wants you to be in it." Yosuke said

"Wha-!? I-I didn't say nothing!" Kanji panicked as Naoto blushed

"What about you? You want them to be in it, right?" Yosuke asked Yu

...

"Well..." Yu muttered

"Oh you can't be serious!" Chie shouted

"Ahh…" Rise giggled "I thought you might be a little jealous, not wanting me to show off to other guys. But I guess you're not that uptight."

"Hey, for the last time, he's _my _boyfriend!" Chie snapped "If anything, he should have a problem with me having to show off to other guys!"

"So long as there are people looking forward to seeing me, I might as well put on a show for 'em." Rise smiled "Of course, there's no need to involve my agency in this."

"Th-That's right! That's the way to go! Teddie's looking forward to it too." Yosuke nodded "Actually, I think he was more excited than anyone. It was him who was pushing me to sign you all up."

"Ugh, so Ted's behind this too…" Chie growled

"We're in an awkward position…if we can't refuse, I suppose there's no sense in arguing the point…" Naoto sighed "But it seems ill-fitting for someone like me to get up on stage…I wonder if there's any way I could take it up with the school authorities…"

"I-I…don't think it's a problem at all. I-I mean, just do it! Ya know…seriously!" Kanji stuttered

"Dude… Looks like your blood's boiling even more than usual…" Yosuke muttered

"Silly Kanji, just tell her you wanna see her onstage..." Rise giggled "So, is it a deal? The four of us will be in the beauty pageant?"

"Wh-What are you saying!?" Naoto gasped

"Um…I beg you, please be in it. If you do, my, uh, doubts will finally be cleared…" Kanji pleaded "C'mon! Make me a man!"

"Doubts…? What are you talking about?" Naoto questioned

"L-Look, just do it, dammit! I m-mean, you're an ace detective, aren't ya!?" Kanji questioned

"Wha-!? What does that have to do with a beauty pageant!?" Naoto grumbled

**AFTER-SCHOOL/ CLASSROOM**

"We're back..." Chie groaned as she and the girls reentered the room with a box of supplies

"Where'd you guys go?" Yosuke asked

"Over to Junes. We had to go get some paint and cloth." Chie explained

"Ohh, for the decorations." Yosuke noted

"Thank you. Did you have them write you an invoice?" The female class rep asked

"Yeah, I think they understood what it was for, so they wrote it without us having to ask." Chie nodded

"There's some things I want to go over about the day of the event." The male rep asked

"Is this about the group date café…?" Chie questioned

"Yes, since Yosuke's leading the executive committee." He nodded

"Wait, what!?" Yosuke yelped

"It was your proposal, right?" The rep asked

"Are you serious…?" Yosuke gulped

"Well, all you have to do is the reception." The rep shrugged "After people sign in, have a few guys and girls sit facing each other at a table, conduct a short session first where they ask each other questions. After about half an hour of that, it'll be confession time. Get them to select the number of the person they like. If the other person accepts, that makes them a couple…hey Yosuke, you listening?"

"Yeah, I hear ya..." Yosuke sighed

**OCTOBER 28/ SCHOOL HALLWAY**

"_The 'Miss' Yasogami High Pageant_...a cross-dressing pageant?" Yu questioned

"Hey, it's Yosuke! We're expecting great things from you!" An eager student cheered

"Haha, they're doing the cross-dressing pageant again this year? Man, they never learn, do they? Ooh, some people have signed up already. Hahah, man, what idiots would want to be in this thing?" Yosuke laughed "Let's see…Yosuke Hanamura

…

Meeeeeee!?

Wait, and…Kanji Tatsumi!? Daisuke Nagase...you're on here too!"

"Yu Narukami...yep, that's my name alright" Yu sighed

"Wow, there's a lot of contestants. Didn't we only get, like, two people last year?

"I heard this year, even if someone else signs you up, you can't back out."

"Well, that's not cool…hey, but what if they did sign themselves up?"

"Ewwww, what a disturbing thought. Seriously, that's really wrong."

"Someone else signs you up…?" Yosuke questioned before glaring "It's them…they must've done this…"

**CLASSROOM**

"You better have a damn good explanation for this!" Yosuke roared

"For what?" Chie shrugged "For what, my ass! For singing us all up in the cross-dressing pageant! It was you, wasn't it!?"

"Ohhh, yeah, that thing." Chie recalled "Rise-chan started saying, _Let's all have fun with this _so I didn't really have a choice. And Kashiwagi seems happy, too, now that there's more people involved in it."

"You little…! This is cross-dressing! CROSS! DRESSING!" Yosuke snapped

"Well, you're the one who started it!" Chie snapped back "It's because of you that we can't back out of the beauty pageant, so it serves you right!"

"That's beside the point…" He groaned

"Don't worry. We'll make you absolutely enchanting. Okay?" Yukiko smiled

"That's not what's important here!" Kanji denied "It's about a man's pride damn it!"

"I understand Yosuke, but why me?" Yu questioned

"Becuase" Rise shrugged

"You know already, right? Once someone signs you up, you can't back out." Chie stated "If you've got a problem with that, go talk to Ms. Kashiwagi."

"Th-There's no way she's gonna listen!" Yosuke whined

"Wha-!? Why're you giving up!?" Kanji coughed "I ain't doin' this! Period!"

"Kanji-kun, are you still okay as far as the mandatory attendance policy?" Yukiko asked "I don't think it would be wise to disappoint a teacher too much."

...

"You are a scary gal, you know that, Senpai…?" Kanji gulped

"Just leave it to us to dress you guys up." Chie smiled "Rise-chan's with us too. There's no way you won't turn out pretty."

"Y-You're positive we'll be pretty…?"

"I guarantee it" Yukiko nodded

"Hey, why're you suddenly fine with this!?" Yosuke cried

"Well, if we gotta do this, might as well go all the way!" Kanji cheered

"There's nothing manly about being a woman!" Yosuke groaned "I seriously refuse…"

"Kashiwagi's sure gonna get angry if you don't show up…" Chie glared "Maybe you and Kanji-kun can be classmates next year."

"Wh-Why is this happening…?" Yosuke cried "We all end up in the same boat, without our consent…what kinda joke is this…?"

"The exact same joke you pulled on us!" Chie snapped

And then Daisuke leapt into the classroom

"WHO THE FUCK SIGNED ME UP FOR THE CROSS DRESSING PAGEANT?!"

**OCTOBER 29/ GROUP DATE CAFE**

"C-Come in for a first-hand experience with group dating…" Yukiko called out "Ooh…this is so embarrassing…there's not that many people passing by here in the first place"

"I think we need some shills to drum up interest." The male rep sighed

"Shills…? Uh, who?" Yosuke sighed

"Who else is here besides us?" He asked

"I-Isn't that kinda sad?" Yosuke asked

"Do we have a choice? We need customers to get the ball rolling. If there aren't many people passing by, we have to get the attention of the ones who are by any means necessary."

"But there's only five of us here…" Yosuke sighed

"Yo, how's it going?" Kanji greeted "I came to check up on you…guys?"

"Perfect timing!" Chie cheered

"Hey" Daisuke greeted

"Great, now I don't have to participate" The male rep sighed

"But now we've got four guys and two girls." Yosuke groaned

"Eh, you guys are cross-dressing tomorrow anyways. One of you can sit on the girls' side." The rep shrugged

"What!? I'm not gonna-"

"Not it" Yu shouted as he jumped into a seat

"Nope" Kanji called as he too grabbed a seat

"Fuck off" Daisuke said as he pushed Yosuke away from a seat and claimed it for himself

"A-Are you serious?" Yosuke gulped

"Alright, get started" The rep sighed as Chie, Yukiko and a reluctant Yosuke sat on the other side

...

"S-So..." Kanji gulped "Do you...uhhh...have hobbies?"

"I like, uh, martial arts in general. M-Mainly watching them…ahahah…" Chie laughed before falling flat "Yikes, this is really embarrassing…"

"M-My hobby is, um…defeating Shadows?" Yukiko said

"That's not a hobby!" Yosuke shouted

"O-Oh yeah, sorry…" Yukiko apologized

"What about you?" Yosuke asked Yu

"Changing things and fusing things" Was his answer

"That's not an answer either!"

"Okay, then we'll ask you a question next!" Chie stated "Umm, umm…"

"What type of girls do you like?" Yukiko asked

"Whoa, getting right to the point…" Yosuke gulped

"I guess…nice girls?" Daisuke shrugged

"Chie" Yu stated

"Aww..." She blushed

"Man, this is lame…" Yosuke groaned before looking at Kanji "Your turn. What type of girls do you like?"

"Umm...well, I like mysterious girls" Kanji stated "Girls who seem tough and distant but are actually-"

"Wonder who that could be" Yosuke chuckled

"What about you?" Daisuke asked "Which one of us would you like?"

"D-Don't make me play along!" Yosuke groaned

"Hey Sennnnnnnnnnnp-Nope" Rise said as she entered and exited the classroom

...

"The group date café is officially a failure…" Yosuke sighed as he slammed his head into the table

**OCTOBER 30/ CLASSROOM**

"Why're you guys guys just standing there?" Chie asked "Come on! Hurry up and sit down"

"C'mon, Kanji-kun. Over here!" Yukiko giggled "Don't worry, I won't hurt you."

"End it Senpai..." Kanji pleaded "Just end me right here..."

"Kou...why'd you leave me" Daisuke pouted

"It turns out I'm entering this too. I must win this contest to see my dream realized!" Teddie cheered

"He seemed bored, so we signed him up as a last-minute contestant." Yosuke shrugged

"So you're making him suffer too, huh…?" Chie asked "Well, if he's been signed up, there's nothing we can do about it. Naoto-kun, can you lend us a hand? We'll leave Teddie to you."

"M-Me?" She stuttered

"The Naoto-Teddie team's unstoppable!" The blond boy smiled

"Well then, um…" Naoto mumbled

"First, I need some dazzling makeup!" He told her

"Y-You're right. Then I'll go borrow a makeup kit from someone…" Naoto nodded

"Wait! The battle begins by choosing the right equipment!" Teddie recalled

"Ooh, we gotta use fake eyelashes, right?" Chie questioned

"Y-Yeah, bring it on!" Yosuke gulped

"Yu-kun, your hair is so long I don't think you even need a wig..." Yumi said in awe

**PAGEANT STAGE**

"So it begins" Kashiwagi chuckled

"Ladies and gentlemen! We now begin the second day of the Culture Festival with the ever-popular _Miss_ Yasogami Pageant!" A man with a pink afro wig and a microphone shouted "Let's get right down to it and introduce our first contestant! She's a runaway express train who's Inaba born and bred, and can kill with both her fists and her looks! Presenting Kanji-chan of the first-year Class 3!"

"'Sup!" A suspiciously-Marilyn Monroe-esc Kanji shouted

_"Gyaaaaaah!"_

_"Ewww! That's so creepy!"_

_"This is wrong on every level…"_

"Now, don't rip me apart for asking, but…what would you say is your best feature?" The afro man asked

"…My eyes?" Kanji shrugged

"Whoa! A conventional answer from this all-too-unconventional beauty! After such a strong start, I don't know how much of a chance the others have, but here's our second contestant!

An eloquent heiress of the noble Junes, she's pure disappointment from the moment she opens her mouth! Presenting Yosuke-chan of the second-year Class 2!"

..

"H-Hi" Yosuke, dressed in a girl's uniform, with lipstick, make-up and a bun in his hair greeted

_"Holy crap!"_

_"And here I thought Yosuke-senpai would be able to pull it off!"_

_"Dude, it's terrifying…I can just imagine someone like him sitting across from me on a train!"_

"Now, you look ready to win in that outfit… Do you often dress like this?"

"Hell no!" Yosuke shouted "Uh…I mean..like, no way!"

"What is with this? We're laughingstocks up here!" Kanji complained

"What did you think this was about…?" Yosuke groaned

"Up next, out third contestant! She's the star of the basketball team and breaker of so many hearts! Ms Daisuke Nagase!"

"D-Don't judge me" A pink dress and fluffy wig wearing Daisuke growled

_"Oh wow..."_

_"Nagase-san's just lost a lot of respect on the basketball team..."_

"So, Nagase-"

"DON'T. SAY. A WORD" Daisuke growled

...

"I've already had about enough of this, but there's still more to come! Up next, our fourth contestant! She has the mildly bitter tang of the city, and she's made more girls cry than there are stars in the sky! Presenting our transfer student who's been breaking hearts in the second-year Class 2, Yu-chan!"

"Yo" Yu, with a girls uniform, long skirt and braided pigtails, and a kendo stick greeted

_"No more!"_

_"Senpai!? Why are you doing this!?"_

_"Whoa…I thought he was cooler than that…"_

"Sounds like your entrance is causing quite a stir! Did you sign yourself up?"

"My friends forced me…" Yu said with a glare at Yosuke

"Tell him Chie Satonaka did it!" Yosuke shouted "Damn that Kashiwagi…how dare she tear way our innocence like this! Now I'm scarred for life, dammit!"

Our last contestant is a random, unaffiliated entrant! She's a friend of our other _beauties_, Calling herself "King of the TV World," she's a cute, sexy little number! Give a warm welcome to Teddie-chan!"

"Gimme your hearts!" A very-Alice in Wonderland Teddie cheered as he skipped along the stage

_"Huh!? That's a boy!?" _

_"He's so cute!"_

_"I'd hit it…"_

* * *

"And the winner of this year's "Miss" Yasogami Pageant is…the random contestant who won everyone's hearts, Ms. Teddie! As our champion, Ms. Teddie will receive a very special prize…later this afternoon, we will be hosting the Miss Yasogami Pageant, with actual beauties this time! Your reward is a position as an honorary judge in that pageant!"

"Woohoo!" Teddie cheered

"A-An honorary judge…? That's one lame prize for what you gotta go through…" Yosuke groaned

"Not everyone can get that excited over a judge position." Chie shrugged

"Seeing him so happy kind of makes me happy too…" Yumi smiled

"Yeah, he's like over the top innocent." Rise laughed

"Well then, Ms. Teddie, how does it feel to have won the pageant and become a judge?"

"Hmhmhm… The long-awaited day has finally come!" Teddie laughed "I decree that one of the judging criteria later this afternoon will be…Tadaaaaa! A swimsuit competition!"

"Wh-Wh-What the hell!? Over my dead body!" Chie screamed

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Yosuke laughed as he fell to his knees and pointed to the girls "Revenge!...Vengeance!...REVENGEANCE!"

"I-I couldn't..." Yumi gulped

"Aww, I didn't bring a swimsuit!" Rise pouted

"That bear needs to be disappeared…" Yukiko glared

"Well, I doubt he has the authority to declare that unilaterally…" Naoto said nervously

"This is great! I love the direction this is going!" Kashiwagi laughed

**CLASSROOM**

"Dress yourselves up as well as you can, you little brats" Kashiwagi giggled

"What is she, the rival woman on a soap opera…?" Chie groaned "Wait, is Kashiwagi serious about winning this?"

"Mr. Teddie dropped this off." A female student said as she handed Chie a bag "He said that they're swimsuits…"

"Hey! We don't need them!" Chie denied

"Heeheeahahahahaaaaahahaha! My mature charms will win the day!" Kashiwagi laughed "I brought my own swimsuit, of course."

"I brought my own too." The obese Hanako sneered

"Wh-What's with these people…?" Chie asked

"Hey, l-let's not do this…" Yukiko suggested

"What's that? Getting cold feet? Wise of you to back out of a fight you can't win." Kashiwagi scoffed before glaring at Rise "You call yourself an idol…but you're just jailbait with no brains, no guts, and especially no figure."

"What…!?" Rise shouted

"There's no way their type would be crowned Miss Inaba. Why not just let them back out?" Hanako mocked

"Oh, and I suppose you think you're gonna take the crown!? You little…snoring pig!" Chie snapped

"Snoring? What're you talking about? Your face is as foul as your mouth, and your brain's rotten to boot." Hanako scoffed

"We went through hell because of you…th-that's it! Now I'm pissed!" Chie roared

"C-Chie-san, please calm down" Yumi pleaded

"Oh? You're going to challange me? Don't waste your time, it's useless" Hanako laughed "Let this be a warning to the others, too. You're going to lose. Now's your last chance to run away."

"R-Run away? Why the hell would we run from someone like you!?" Chie shouted

"Well…we did kinda run away last time…" Yukiko recalled

"That's what I'm saying! We gotta stand our ground and get our revenge for that!" Chie snapped "How can we cower and hide when they're picking a fight!?"

"Y-Yeah…" Yukiko meekly nodded

"Right, Rise-chan? Yumi-chan? Naoto-kun!? We wont' run from this, right!?" Chie encouraged

"Huh…!? Me too!?" Naoto yelped "Why are you letting yourself be so easily provoked!?

Th-Th-Th-There's no way! Absolutely. No. Way. That I'm wearing a swimsuit!"

"You're not goin' anywhere…!" Chie demanded

**PAGEANT STAGE**

"But that's not all for the Culture Festival's main event! There's still more to come in the Miss Yasogami Pageant!" The Announcer called as Hanako and Kashiwagi stood before him "The judging continues! Can you hear the crowd going wild!? Now, for our next contestant, Ms. Chie Satonaka of the second-year's Class 2! Come on out, Chie!"

"H-Hi, I'm Chie Satonaka." She intoduced, now wearing her casual summer attire of a light green jacket, jean shorts and boots

"Tell us a little bit about yourself!"

"U-Um, I'm kind of shy and reserved…" She stuttered "And my favorite food is…pudding."

"You big liar, it's meat!" Yosuke called

"You shouldn't lie Chie!" Yu shouted

"Thank you very much! Up next, another contestant from Class 2, Ms. Yukiko Amagi!"

"H-Hello, my name is Yukiko Amagi." She said, now in her red summer dress "Um, my family runs the Amagi Inn. If you ever find yourself in the area, please give us a visit. Our hot springs are open to the public year-round, so whenever you're in the mood to enjoy them, please drop by…"

"And next up, is a shy beauty for Class 3, Ms Yumi Ozawa..."

"H-Hello" She said meekly "I-I'm Yumi Ozawa, I'm in the drama club...well...I was but I decided to leave after..."

"Alright, that'll do nicely! Next up, a very familiar face-from the first-year Class 2, Ms. Rise Kujikawa!"

"Hi-hi! My name's Rise Kujikawa!" She greeted "I haven't been in town very long, but it's a great place and I'm 100% thrilled to be here! So sorry that I'm not working as an idol right now! Risette's gonna do her best, so I hope you'll all cheer for me!"

"The real Risette ladies and gentlemen, in the flesh! Thank you very much! Next is the mysterious transfer student of the first-year's Class 1, Ms. Naoto Shirogane!"

"I-I'm Naoto Shirogane" The girl sans her usual hat introduced "It's hard to believe I'm up on stage at a pageant like this…This is beyond my wildest imaginings… I-I really don't know what to say…C-Can I step back now…?"

"Wh-Whoa…" Kanji gulped

"And with that, all six uniquely beautiful contestants are on stage! Now, let's have our special judge, Mr. Teddie, ask them some questions."

"Ahem. I am Teddie, the honorary judge for this pageant." The blond say stated "Please keep in mind that if you anger me, you will be at a disadvantage…Well, Ms. Chie. Do you have a boyfriend?"

"Wha-!? T-Teddie, you…!"

"She does!" Yosuke called before pointing to Yu "This guy!"

"Will you shut up?!" Chie roared

"Ms. Yukiko, have you ever smooched anyone before?" Teddie asked

"Huh…!? S-Stop it!" She blushed

"Ms. Naoto, where are you ticklish?"

"I-I beg your pardon?"

"Can I say at your house next time, Rise-chan?"

"What kind of a question if that…?"

"A-Anyways, I have a surprise announcement for you all!" The announcer called out "Wait 'til you hear this! For the first time ever, this years pageant will feature a swimsuit competition! And it's all thanks to Mr. Teddie here! We'll take a brief break while our contestants put on their swimsuits and be back in just a few moments!"

* * *

"A-Ahaha..h-hi" Chie stated, clad in the swimsuit she wore during the campout

"Dude, your nose..." Yosuke muttered as blood from Yu's nose leaked like a waterfall

"You look like a dirty old man…" Kanji gurgled "Chie-senpai is cute, though…"

"I-I'm sorry…" A bikini clad Yukiko muttered

"Sorry for what? This is great!" Yosuke yelped

"Wow, Yukiko-senpai…she's exactly how I imagined she'd be…" Kanji mumbled

"Yoohoo, heeere's Risette!" The girl introduced, wearing the same bikini her shadow wore

"Whoa, this isn't fair! An idol has that glow to her that other girls don't have!" Yosuke said

"Really?" Kanji questioned

"I...I..." Yumi, clad in a black bikini stuttered, highlighting her figure

"W-Whoa...I never knew Yumi was so..." Daisuke muttered

"Huh? Ms. Naoto?" The announcer called "She's not coming out…well, sad news, everyone, but Ms. Naoto won't be coming out for this portion."

"Fine by me! The fewer rivals I have to crush, the better." Kashiwagi sneered

"Oh well, I had a feeling that would happen…" Yosuke sighed "Too bad, Kanji."

"Huh? No, um… well, yeah…" Kanji nodded "But she tried her best, and that's all the matters"

"Yeah, you're right." Yosuke nodded "Now wipe your nsoe"

"Wha-Damn it!" Kanji cursed as he wiped the blood from his nose

"Well, it's about time we voted…" Yosuke sighed as he turned to Yu "Who're you going for?"

"C-Chie..." Yu muttered "My god Chie..."

* * *

"Thanks for waiting, everyone. The results are in! Looking at the way the vote went…you guys out in the audience had a hard time picking a favorite! Lots of different opinions, with every one of our contestants having their own enthusiastic supporters! On the other hand, it looks like you girls were all thinking the same thing! And so there's a clear winner…Grand prize goes to…!

Ms. Naoto Shirogane!

Her androgynous charm seems to have won most of the girls' hearts. We'd like to present Ms. Naoto with her award now, but…it looks like she stepped outside."

"She won even though she dropped out of the last part…ahaha, that's pretty funny." Chie laughed

"Man, losing to Naoto…well, I guess I didn't appeal to the girls that much. Oh well!" Rise laughed "I think it's enough that we beat those hands down, Senpai!

"Grr…I… how could I lose a beauty pageant…!?" Kashiwagi growled

"Ms. Kashiwagi…I… I can't believe this…!" Hanako muttered

"Neither can I! Oh, Hanako!" Kashiwagi sobbed

"M-Ms. Kashiwagiii!" Hanako sobbed too

* * *

"Oh big bro!" Nanako smiled

"Ah, good thing we found you." Dojima greeted "I've got to make a business trip to the prefectural office, and I won't be back until tomorrow. And your mom's working the Night shift as Junes tonight so...shame it had to fall during your school's Culture Festival. Nanako and I were both looking forward to it…but could you show Nanako around?"

"Sure" Yu nodded

"Would you like to walk around with us, Nanako-chan?" Yukiko asked

"Can I?" She asked

"Thanks. Then I'm gonna get going." Dojima waved

"Have a safe trip." Nanako called

"Yeah. You have fun too, Nanako." Dojima smiled

"Okay, dad!" Nanako beamed

"Hey Nanako-chan, why don't you and your brother come over and stay at my place tonight?" Yukiko asked

"Huh? Huh? Huh? What did you just say, Yuki-chan!?" Teddie yelped

"Oooh, a celebration at your inn!?" Rise cheered

"Is that okay with you!?" Kanji asked

"Uh-uh, I promised you guys a while ago, so yeah" Yukiko nodded

"Hell yeah! I'm down!" Yosuke yelled

"Can I boil in the hot springs!?" Teddie asked

"Oh, I should call my Grampa and let him know! It's just one night, right?" Naoto asked

"C'mon, it'll be fun. Everyone will be there." Yukiko nodded

"Can I…?" Nanako asked

"It's up to you, Nanako." Yu told her

"Let's go! I wanna spend the night!" Nanako nodded

"Wheeee! Hot springs! Yukata! Flushed skins!" Teddie skipped

"Are you sure its' okay…? I mean, isn't it still the busy season?" Chie questioned

"We've had fewer visitors this year…there are some open rooms, too." Yukiko told them

"Oh, okay…might as well, then!" Chie smiled "Man, when was the last time I stayed at Yukiko's place?"

**AMAGI INN**

"Aww…we're in different rooms…" Teddie pouted

"Well…duh." Daisuke groaned

"It's one thing if they were next door, but they're so far away…" Teddie continued

"Yukiko said there weren't that many open rooms, so they're up on another floor." Yosuke said "First thing they're gonna do is take Nanako-chan to the hot springs."

"I-Is it one of those _girls and guys together_ springs!?" Teddie yelped

"I don't wanna take more'n one bath if I don't have to. Why don't we take a dip before we hit the sack?" Kanji shrugged

"Yeah." Yu nodded

"By the way... 'sup with this room?" Kanji asked as he looked around "It looks pretty expensive…"

"Oh, you thought so too? Normally a room like this wouldn't be open during the busy season…" Yosuke noted "I was trying not to think about it, but…you don't think something happened here, do you?"

"Now that you mention it-" Yosuke muttered

**RIIIIIIIIIIING**

"J-JESUS!" Yu screamed as he leapt out of skin

"G-Geez, that freaked me out!" Yosuke yelped "Y-You answer it, Kanji!"

"Wh-What're you freaking out for…?" Kanji gulped as he picked up the phone with shaking hands "Hello?

...

Oh, I see! Cool, thanks!"

He then hung up and returned the phone to its place

"That was the front desk. Said the hot springs should be pretty empty right now." Kanji stated

"Wow, Amagi Inn, great service…I broke out in a cold sweat…" Yosuke sighed happily

"Well, c'mon then, let's go wash it off." Kanji chuckled

"I can't wait to take a bath with everyone." Teddie smiled "We'll all face the same way and wash each other's backs, and we're gonna sing songs while looking at Mr. Fuji, right?"

"That's a bath house." Yu groaned

"Man, everything on this side is so fun." Teddie smiled "It's all thanks to you for bringing people over to my side. Thank you, Sensei…"

**HOTSPRINGS**

"Noato-chan, come on over, there's plenty of room" Yukiko called out to the girl who was over in one corner with her back turned

"Huh? Oh, o-okay…" Naoto muttered as she sawm over

"Wow, Naoto, your skin looks so soft. Can I touch? Can I touch?" Rise asked

"Huh? U-Um…" Naoto stuttered

"Wow, it really is smooth." Yukiko noted

"You're so lucky. You have such fair skin and silky hair…" Chie complimented

"No unneeded body fat, either." Rise said

"Eek! H-Hey, where are you touching…?" Naoto yelped before deciding to change the subject "Ahem, N-Nanako-chan! Um… A-Are you okay with staying over at someone else's place like this? Aren't you scared?"

"No, it's lots of fun!" Nanako smiled "At home, I'm always alone until big bro or Auntie Motoko comes back."

"Oh...I-I see..." Naoto muttered

"But I'm good at staying home alone." Nanako said "I always do what my dad tells me, like not opening the door for strangers."

"Wow! I bet he's so proud of you!" Chie smiled

...

"I don't get this..." Labrys sighed as she sat in the springs

"U-Umm...Labrys-san" Yumi muttered "Is it okay for you to be in here, I mean...can you get water damage?"

"Nah" Labrys shrugged

"That's a funny suit you're wearing Labrys-san" Nanako giggled

"Hey, Nanako-chan. Do you want to swim around?" Yukiko asked

"Can I!?" She gasped

"I've been swimming here since I was young." Yukiko nodded

"Do you still do it?" Nanako asked

"Huh? Umm…" Yukiko muttered

"Why are you hesitating?" Chie questioned

"C'mon, let's race to the other side! Whoever loses owes everyone a fruit milk!" Rise said

"I want lemon soda." Yukiko called

"Uh, wh-what!? Me too!?" Chie gilped

"Check out my dead man's float." Rise stated

"Wow, you're good!" Nanako complemented

_**SPLASH**_

"Ooh! What a giant spring! I'll show you all my Teddie paddle!" The former bear called out

"Ow! What the-HUH!?" Yukiko shrieked

"Y-Y-You guys!?" Chie shouted

"Wh-Wh-Wh-Why are you guys here!?" Yosuke yelped

"Th-That's my line!" Chie yelled as the girls grabbed the nearby buckets and began to toss them

"Invasion of privacy is a crime y'know!" Naoto yelled as she lobbed a bucket

"N-Naoto?" Kanji gulped before said bucket smacked him in the jaw

"Dude, this is not good!" Daisuke yelped as he dodged a bucket

"At times like this, there's only one thing to do..." Yu said firmly "Be brave and stand your ground!"

SMACK

"Retreat!" Yu called out just after a bucket collided with his nose

"Retreeeeat!" Teddie yelled as he ran out

"It's an honest mistake!" Kanji yelled as the group ran back

"We're not gonna forget this!" Yosuke yelled

...

"We'll have to punish them later…" Chie glared

"Wow, you got 'em good!" Nanako cheered

"My aim's pretty deadly, huh?" Rise laughed

"I wonder if they caught a glimpse…" Naoto mumbled

"Oh…it's actually the guys' turn to use the springs now!" Yukiko asked "I got the times mixed up…Ahahahaha!"

"Are you serious…?" Chie gulped "Crap, I think we went too far with them…"

"Er…what should we do?" Naoto asked

"Oh, it'll be fine as long as we keep quiet about it! This'll just be between us girls!" Rise giggled

"Do you want to race again, Nanako-chan?" Yukiko smiled

**ROOM**

"I double checked...it was definately the guys time in the springs..." Yosuke sobbed

"I dunno why, but my head's all bumpy…" Teddie moaned

"Those're lumps from the pails whacking you in the head. You got lumps, man. Ahaha…ha…" Kanji laughed slowly

"Hey…guys…?" Yosuke muttered "Did you, uh…see anything?

"No…" Kanji denied

"None whatsoever…" Daisuke sighed

"Does Labby-chan count?" Teddie asked

"Dammit…I lead a cursed life…" Yosuke groaned "Let's just go to bed…"

...

"No!" Yu shouted as he shot to his feet

"W-Whoa, senpai?!" Kanji coughed

"This injustice cannot stand!" Yu called "It's time for Revenge!"

...

"For vengeance!" Teddie screamed

"REVENGE!" Kanji roared

"VENGEANCE!" Daisuke yelled

"REVE-" Yosuke shot up

"Don't say it, it was stupid enough the first tine" Yu cut him off

**RECEPTION AREA**

"Man...can't believe Yu-senpai is going to take the fall for this..." Kanji gulped

"He's a brave soul..." Teddie muttered "H-Hey, the receptionist went away!"

"Now's our chance!" Kanji yelped as he ran over and checked the guest book "Girl's room...floor 2, room 12! Got it"

"Okay, who's good at voices?" Teddie asked

"Dude, you do it" Kanji handed him the phone

"M-Me...?!" The former bear yelped "O-Okay..."

_BEEP BEEP BEEP_

_"H-Hello?"_ _Chie's voice rang_

"Oh hello..." Teddie said in a low pitch voice "Just a call to say that the open air baths are open to women"

_"Oh, cool! Thanks!" Chie thanked "Hey, they sai-"_

"Now what?" Teddie asked as they hung up

"Now it is in Senpai's hands..." Kanji muttered

**OPEN AIR BATH ENTRANCE**

_OPEN TO: MEN_

"Now one little switch..." Yosuke muttered as he switched the plates

_OPEN TO: WOMEN_

"And it's done" Yosuke laughed

"Are you sure about this?" Daisuke asked

"I am..." Yu nodded

"Your bravery knows no bounds" Daisuke said as he and Yosuke saluted

"You are beyond the the title of Leader." Yosuke said "I hereby grant you the title of Big Boss"

"At ease..." Yu said with a salute "Where I'm going...there is no salvation, for this...I'm heading straight to hell, but what better place is there for us?"

"Good luck..." Daisuke and Yosuke nodded as they hit out of sight

"Now..." Yu said as he walked into the open air bath, wearing only a towel

Which he flung over his shoulder and stepped into the bath

"It's time"

And then he heard the approaching chatter of the girls

"It's finally open again" Rise sighed happily

"Where's Nanako-chan?" Yukiko asked

"Sound asleep" Naoto nodded

"No Nanako?" Yu questioned "Good...I don't want her to see me like this"

"I just hope they don't peep this time..." Yumi muttered

"Come on, let's get it!" Chie smiled

...

"Now!" Yosuke yelled as the girls passed him and he and Daisuke ran over and switched the _WOMEN _sign back to _MEN_

"Good luck..." Daisuke muttered as he and Yosuke ran off

"Aw man-I can-" Rise sighed

"AH!" Naoto yelled

"H-Hey, Perverts!" Yu yelled

"Y-Yu-senpai!" Rise gasped

"Get outta here!" Yu roared

"S-S-S-S-S-Sorry!" Chie yelled as she and the girls quickly retreated back in

"W-What is he doing there!?" Yukiko yelped as she turned to the sign "It's open...to...uh-oh"

"I-It's open to men?!" Chie shrieked "But that phone call!"

"I-I..." Rise muttered a small amount of blood trickled from her nose "Senpai's...bare..."

"T-That was my first time seeing my boyfriend naked..." Chie gulped

"D-Did anyone see...the front?" Yukiko asked

"N-N-No..." Naoto stuttered "Just...the rear, I MEAN BACK! I just saw his back!"

"I...I..." Yumi muttered

"So that's what you guys look like underneath those clothes..." Labrys wondered

"W-We should apologize later..." Yukiko muttered as they quickly scampered away

...

"Revenge..." Yu smiled as he stepped back into the Inn "Is sweet"

"Yo" Kanji laughed as the group stepped in "We heard the girls, it so-Ahh!"

"What?" Yu questioned

"Dude!" Yosuke yelled as all the guys covered their eyes "Towel!"

"Oh shit! Sorry!" Yu yelped as he grabbed the towel off his shoulder and covered up


	20. Beginning of the End

**BEGINNING OF THE END**

**OCTOBER 31/ SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK/ 8AM**

"I know it was Teddie by the way" Chie glared as she and Yu walked home "He was the one who made the call that told us the bath was open"

"Well, the more you know" Yu chuckled

"Jerk..." Chie pouted "Well...maybe it Yukiko's fault for checking the times..."

"Well, now you've seen me naked" Yu laughed "How long until I see you? Without a towel that is"

"S-Shut up!" She snapped with a small punch to the gut

"Heh...relax" He groaned "I saw you in a bikini yesterday, that's enough for now"

"Idiot!" She spat "You're such a prick..."

"A prick who loves you" Yu smiled as he kissed her on the forehead

"God, you are such..." Chie sighed "Just shut up..."

...

"Well neither of us really got to take a bath..." Yu sighed "How about we take one back at my place?"

"God damn you!" Chie shouted as she kicked him in the shin

**EVENING/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"It's cold today..." Nanako shuddered

_"Now for our next story…Mr. Kozai of the Environmental Concern Society visited a local elementary school to investigate the effects of the fog. Thick fog has appeared frequently in Inaba over the past few years, and the cause of it has yet to be determined. There's been much conjecture on the origin of this fog, and some are concerned about its effects on the human body. Town officials believe it highly unlikely that the fog could be harmful._

_One official suggested that the concern is largely tied to public anxiety in response to the recent murders. One hearing about the phenomenon, Mr. Kozai visited the local elementary school to investigate its effects. He interviewed the children playing happily in the fog about their health and any anxieties they were facing…"_

"Oh, that man came to my school." Nanako said as she pointed at the TV

_"Upon completing the investigation, Mr. Kozai issued a statement.; '_In this day and age, one must stay aware of even slight changes in the environment and react politically.

"Today, I talked with a young student who spoke her own mind, free from the influence of those around her. It was an attitude and an example that we as adults can learn from.

"Our primary concern should always be to protect these children's futures._' On that note, Mr. Kozai ended his statement."_

"Achoo!" Nanako sneezed "My head hurts..."

"Your face is red" Yu noted as he put his hand to her head "And you're burning up, you've got a fever"

"Hey...big bro?" Nanako asked as Yu went to get some medicine "When are you and Auntie Motoko moving out?"

"I don't know" He told her

"It's going to be winter soon…" Nanako said "If it snows, can we make a snowman…? We can play a lot…"

**NOVEMBER 1**

"It's..." Naoto muttered

"That _card_ again?" Yu asked

"Yes, it's unmistakable!" Naoto nodded firmly. "Judging by its appearance, it's on the same cardstock, the same size, unsigned just like last time. I'm almost certain this came form the same person…let's talk about this someplace more private."

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

_Dear detective, Your prized possessions are in my hand. Can you recover them? The game is afoot. -The Phantom Thief_

"It seems this is the work of the figure who snuck into the Shirogane estate." Naoto stated "I'll send this to Yakushiji-san so he can turn it into the police as evidence. The Phantom Thief? How absurd…I haven't the time to waste on this"

"Why so uncomfortable?" Yu asked

"I-I'm not fretting! I'm just upholding the Shirogane name in seeing this case through to the end." Naoto said firmly "Although…he broke into our estate and sent me this challenge…

Leaving this in the police's hands could jeopardize the honor of the Shirogane name…Argh! That's why I don't like this! When I'm with you, I always seem to lose my composure…

I don't want to get involved with this sort of childish game. But…to ignore it only makes me angry!"

"Only one solution" Yu sighed "We'll have to catch him together..."

"Of course we will…you're the one who brought this to my attention…" Naoto nodded with a slight blush "Let's work together on this"

**NOVEMBER 2/ PATH TO SCHOOL**

"Morning Senpai" Rise greeted "I had so much fun last week. There was the Culture Festival, and then we had the sleepover with everyone! I was really happy. I thought that I'd never be able to experience things like that anymore…oh, did you see the weather report? It looks like the weather's going to start getting rough this weekend.

"Yeah, we need to keep a close eye on the Midnight Channel." Yu nodded

"It hasn't rained lately, so we haven't been able to see it. We might be in for a surprise the next time it's on." Rise sighed "The town seems to think that the case is closed now that there's a suspect, but the real killer hasn't been caught yet."

**AFTER-SCHOOL**

"You and Naoto..." Kanji muttered

"What about it?" Yu asked

"You sure do like to spend a lot of time together" Kanji shot with a slight glare

"I-It's nothing like that" Yu muttered "I'm helping her with something"

"Like what?" Kanji questioned

"Something personal..." Yu sighed

"You see, it's that crap!" Kanji growled "What the hell man?! You already got Chie-senpai! You can't-"

"It's nothing romantic!" Yu denied "Look, I already broke one friendship because of girl issues, I'm not making the same mistake here. Kanji, I can tell you truthfully and I swear this upon my life, my mother's, Nanako's, Chie's and my future grandchildren, I have _ZERO _romantic interest in Naoto!"

...

"S-Sorry..." Kanji sighed "I just..."

"Look, if you like her, then I can help-" Yu suggested

"No, no, I just..." Kanji muttered

"There's nothing wrong with liking a girl..." Yu shrugged

"I...I don't even know where to begin with this..." Kanji groaned "I-I don't want help! This is something I wanna do on my own..."

"I understand" Yu nodded as he began to depart

"But...I just wanna know one thing" Kanji said to him

"Shoot" Yu told him

"How do you..._know_?" Kanji asked

"Do the songs on the Radio make sense?" Yu asked

...

"Oh shit" Kanji cursed

**NOVEMBER 3/ SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"These cards came from Shiroku Store." Naoto observed "When I talked with the owner, her description matched the one you gave. This _Phantom Thief_ purchased these cards mere days before handing one to you...If that's the case, it's hard to imagine that any elaborate process was performed on the card. Although... I do detect the faint, lingering scent of citrus. A very weak cologne, perhaps...what should I do...?"

"I dunno...citrus? Lemon? Invisible ink maybe?" Yu chuckled

"Invisible ink?" Naoto questioned before gasping "Invisible ink!

"I was joking" Yu said

"I'm not!" Naoto stated "Your house is closer. Let's go test it out now!"

**DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"It really was invisible ink..." Naoto sighed "The citrus juices staining the paper burn first, making it legible...a grown man, employing such childish tricks!? And this sentence here..."

_Eating letters with a red face._

"Eating letters with a red face?" Naoto questioned "This is..."

"A...mailbox?" Yu questioned "I mean...red...letters..."

"Indeed! There's one in the shopping dist-"

"I'm home" Motoko called out as she stepped into view

"We're just heading out Mom" Yu stated

"Hello" Naoto bowed "I'm a friend of Yu-senpai, I'm Naoto Shirogane"

"Oh he-..." Motoko muttered "Do I...know you?"

"Hmm? Why do I ask?" Naoto questioned

"Sorry, I thought there was something familiar about you" Motoko giggled "My mistake, I won't keep you two"

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"This is..." Naoto said as she picked something up from behind the Mailbox "Grampa had this? Why did he keep it...?"

"What is it?" Yu asked, causing Naoto to gulp

"I made this... when I was a child." She stated "It's a...detective badge...It has no real function, though. A petty challenge...and the prize was this stolen detective badge...I have an idea who the Phantom Thief might be, but none as to his motive. This is an important case to me and yet... without you, I'd never have cracked it. Rather, I wouldn't have bothered...thank you, Yu-san."

"Don't worry, I'll help out" Yu nodded

"T-Thank you" She smiled

**NOVEMBER 4/ PATH TO SCHOOL**

"Hey Senpai, sup?" Kanji greeted "Been a while since it rained last, hasn't it? The weather report says this rain's gonna last all night. We're gonna have to watch the Midnight Channel."

"You're right." Yu nodded "Things have been so quiet as of late..."

"Only we know that the real killer is still out there, right?" Kanji stated "Now that I think about it, we have to be even tougher now that the cops are only looking for the one guy…"

"Katsuya-san and The Shadow Operatives are doing his best to pursue the second culprit in secret, all we can do is trust him" Yu sighed

**EVENING/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"Dad's late..." Nanako sighed

"Mom's late too..." Yu noted

_RIIIIIING_

"I'll get it" Nanako said as she wondered over to the phone "Dojima Residence...oh, hi Dad!

Uh-huh…all right. It's okay, I know it's your job. Uh-huh…uh-huh. Big bro's with me, so… Okay, byebye."

"Is he working late?" Yu asked as Nanako walked back over

"Dad says he's coming home tomorrow." Nanako sighed "But I'm not lonely…you're here with me."

"Yeah..." Yu nodded before he shivered slightly

"It's cold today too…" Nanako noted "Wanna bring out the kotatsu? Dad said we could pull it out if it got too cold. That'll make it nice and warm!"

* * *

"Okay, I'm turning it on." Nanako smiled as they laid out under the table, but disappointment soon ensured "What…? It's not coming on. Looks like it's broken."

...

"We'll just have to buy a new one" Yu shrugged

"Huh? We can buy one? At Junes?" Nanako asked "Yaaay! When you have some time, let's go to Junes!"

**MIDNIGHT/ YU'S ROOM**

"Shit..." Yu muttered as a small figure appeared on the Midnight Channel "It's too blurry...I can't tell who it is"

And then, just as it ended, his phone rang

_"Hey, did you see that!?" Yosuke questioned It was really blurry, but you saw someone on the screen, right? Dammit…is there gonna be another kidnapping…? Let's get together as soon as we can tomorrow. The one just now was too blurry to jump to any conclusions. But maybe someone has an idea of who it might be…we definitely need to talk. Just remember to keep your schedule open tomorrow after school."_

**GAS STATION**

"Well now..." The Attendant smiled as he turned to a horrified Shinya "Isn't this interesting?"

**NOVEMBER 5/ JUNES**

"I watched the Midnight Channel as you suggested" Naoto sighed "To think a master of deduction and evidence would strain her eyes over an urban legend like this…and yet…I definitely saw someone."

"Could any of you tell who it was?" Yosuke asked

"From a fuzzy picture like that? No way." Kanji groaned

"How about the regular TV? Has anyone become famous around here lately?" Yukiko asked

"I can't think of any offhand…" Naoto admitted "I suppose these was that politician who visited to quell the rumors about the fog. His statement was read on TV…but the chances of him being the one are slim. He returned immediately to the city after his inquiry."

"Hrmmm…" Teddie pondered

"Hm? What's the matter?" Yosuke questioned " Oh yeah, they stuck you with the midnight shift for falling asleep on the beds in housewares. I told you to use the TV in the electronics department, right? Did you remember to check it out?"

"How rude! I made a promise with Nanako-chan and I'm serious about living!" Teddie glared "From what I saw…wasn't the person on TV last night pretty small?"

"I dunno...the image was too blurry to make out if the person was even a guy or a girl, let alone short or tall" Chie sighed "It was probably just a dream or your imagination. Either way, though, did you sense anyone in that world?"

"Nope. No one's come so far." Teddie denied

"Then we might have to wait one more night and see…" Rise sighed

"Yeah, I guess so…" Yosuke sighed "Good thing it looks like the rain'll keep up all night. Don't forget to check again later on."

**EVENING/ DOJIMA RESIDENCE**

"Hey I'm back" Dojima greeted

"Welcome back!" Nanako smiled "Dad, the kotatsu's broken. Can me and big bro go buy a new one?"

"The kotatsu…? Ahh, it's already that season, huh? Yeah, the weather has been odd lately…" Dojima sighed "All right, I'll leave it up to you. Get whichever kind you want. By the way, there was a letter for you"

"For me?" Yu questioned as Dojima handed it to him and he immediantly opened it

_if you dont stop this time someone close will be put in and killed_

...

"Hey! What the hell is this?!" Dojima shouted as he snatched the letter

"W-What is it?!" Motoko rushed over

"Not often we get letters with no return address on them. So I was right…" Dojima growled as he knelt down to Yu's level "Be straight with me…you're involved in the case, aren't you? What are you up to?"

"W-What is this?" Motoko gasped as she looked at the letter "Is someone threatning you?!"

"N-No!" Yu denied as he stood up

"So you're not going to be honest with me. I've been treating you like family…that's why I never questioned you on this." Dojima glared "But I see that was a mistake…I should've intervened much earlier because I care for you. I will have the truth from you today."

"D-Dad…" Nanako muttered

"We'll continue this somewhere else. But I'm not letting you leave until I'm convinced." Dojima stated "This is for your own good…got that?"

"Ryotaro!" Motoko gasped

"It's alright." Dojima told her before turning to Nanako "We'll be right back, so don't wait up for us to get to bed…okay?"

The young girl was clearly scared…

"We'll be back soon." Yu said quietly to her to calm her down

"Okay…I'll be waiting." Nanako muttered

"Ryotaro!" Motoko called as he began to pull Yu away

"It's okay Mom..." Yu told her as he began to exit "I'll explain everything to Uncle and then I'll be back..."

_SLAM_

"What the hell..." Motoko muttered as she could hear Dojima driving away with Yu

**POLICE STATION**

_RIIIIIING_

"I'll hang onto this" Dojima stated as he took Yu's cellphone, the two in a room with Adachi "Now speak up. What have you gotten yourself into? What was that warning letter about? Why would you be sent something like that?"

...

"Fine..." Yu nodded "I'll tell you everything...Adachi-san will back me up"

"Huh?" Dojima questioned

"Umm...well..." Adachi muttered

And then Yu told him everything, the dream, falling into the TV and most importantly;

"Persona…? People going inside a TV!?" Dojima spat before glaring "I thought you'd finally tell me what's really going on here…Enough! That's enough…I guess half a year wasn't long enough for you to trust me but I hoped you'd open up to me a little…"

"He's telling the truth?"

"Adachi?!" Dojima questioned

"It's true...every word" Adachi said "I was even thrown in once, my Persona is called Magatsu-Izanagi..."

"Christ almighty, did you hit your head?" Dojima scoffed "There's-"

"Ask Katsuya-san" Adachi stated "He has a persona too...as does Naoto Shirogane"

"Enough!" Dojima snapped "You"

"For gods sake, look!" Yu shouted as he stood up and walked over to the TV over the set of drawers to his left

And stuck his hand in

...

"W-What the hell..." Dojima gasped as he ran over and inspected it "It's...It's really in the TV"

"Dojima-san..." Adachi muttered

"I-I have to..." Dojima mumbled as he stormed out of the room

"Dojima-san!" Adachi cried as he chased after him

**JUNES**

"Man, why are we stuck on stock duty" Yosuke grumbled

"It's because I'm not working hard enough! There's no getting around it." Teddie said happily

"And you're proud of that because…?" Yosuke groaned "Why am I taking care of you anyways…? I shouldn't have bought you this…hang onto it, okay? It's your own cell."

"I-I've entered the information age!" Teddie gasped as Yosuke handed him a phone

"We'd get worried if we couldn't reach you." Yosuke sighed "It's just a cheap kid's model, though."

"Th… Th-Thank you, Yosuke…" Teddie said with tears in his eyes

"So, to use it, press this button…" Yosuke tried to explain "Uhh, scrap that. Watch, I'll show you how I use mine...Yu's not picking up…It's raining right now, so I was gonna remind him about the Midnight Channel…Does he not hear it because he's out?"

"I wanna go to Nana-chan's place! I promised to play with her lots!" Teddie smiled

"We're not going. And go put those snacks back. It's already dinnertime, so save 'em for your next visit!" Yosuke snapped "Oh wait, I get it, if he's out then maybe then Nanako-chan is home alone"

"I feel bad to think of her staying home all alone!" Teddie pouted "We could go take her some dinner! Please please please please!"

"Okay okay, I hear you! Geez…" Yosuke sighed

"So we can go!?" Teddie said excitedly "Sweet! You're so mature, Yosuke! My heart just skipped a beat because of your thoughtfulness."

"Hang on a sec, I'll try calling again...he's still not picking up…oh, duh. I forgot to try his home line…" Yosuke grumbled

_"Hello?"_

"Oh, Motoko-san." Yosuke noted "Um, is Yu home?"

_"N-No" Motoko sighed "Yosuke-kun do you know anything about this? Yu got this strange letter and Ryotaro took him to the Police Station"_

"W-Wait, what!? He got taken to the police station!?" Yosuke gaped "I-I don't know anything about that...sorry, I have to go"

"Yosuke?" Teddie asked

"Did he get a second one!?" Yosuke yelped "And Dojima-san saw that, so…he took him to the station? I need to call the others!"

**DOJIMA HOUSEHOLD**

"Damn it..." Motoko cursed

"Auntie...are Dad and Big Bro fighting?" Nanako asked meekly

"N-No, sweetie, they're-"

_KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

"Oh thank god, they came back" Motoko sighed in relief as she ran over the door and opened it "Ryot-"

"Don't move!"

Motoko was frozen instantly. There _did not_ stand her Brother and Son, but rather a man holding up a gun to her head

And then man;...

"S-Shinya..." She gasped

**POLICE STATION**

"H-How did you do it?" Dojima asked as he stormed back into the room, followed by Adachi "That trick where you put your arm in, how-"

"Uncle..." Yu muttered "I-"

_BZZZZZZTTTT_

"What the-?!" Dojima cursed as the TV began to flicker

"Midnight..." Adachi muttered

"Oh my god..." Yu muttered as he examined the figure that appeared on TV "It's Nanako!"

"What?!" Dojima gaped as he ran over and examined the footage "H-How is she on here?!"

"Oh god, Dojima-san, call home right now!" Adachi cried "Nanako-chan is in danger!"

* * *

"What did you do?!" Motoko screamed as Shinya drove down the street with her forcefully in the passenger seat

"Will you shut up!" He snapped "I had to put her in there!"

"Where did she go?!" Motoko shouted "How the fuck did you push her into a TV?!"

"I-I'll explain later!" Shinya shouted

"Son of a bitch!" Motoko roared as she jumped him, causing him to twist the steering wheel

"Stop it you crazy bitch!" Shinya shouted as he tried to push her off "I have to do this or they're going to kill you!"

"Shut up, stop making excuse you bastard!" Motoko yelled as Shinya threw her off "What the hell did you do to Nanako?!"

"I'm saving her!" He shouted as he sped up

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

_"Wasn't that Nanako-chan on the news right now?!" Chie cried "How could it be her…!?"_

"I know what you're thinking, but… Nanako-chan does fit the pattern." Naoto said as she ran down the path "She wasn't seen…but she was heard."

_"What!?"_

"Do you remember the politician who visited a local school, and made the news several times?" Naoto question "In those interviews, he always quoted a particular student he spoke with. The child became well-known while remaining anonymous…that girl was Nanako-chan!

A reporter who took interest in this released her photo and interview using her real name in today's evening paper. But even before that… This is a small, rural town. Her identity must have been circulating for quite some time."

_"Oh my God…"_

"I should've realized it much sooner…" Naoto admitted "But I was hung up on the idea of people who were "shown" on TV… It didn't occur to me that this would qualify…"

_"Wh-What're we going to do? Nanako-chan's home alone right now, isn't she!?"_

"I'm on my way there as we speak to check on her!" Naoto stated "Yosuke-senpai is heading to the police station! He said he called Kanji-kun and Daisuke-kun too. They'll explain the situation there.

_"Alright, I'll join them right away! And I'll let Yukiko, Yumi and Rise-chan know!"_

"Yes, please do!"

**POLICE STATION**

"Labrys...please" Adachi pleaded over the phone "Get over there as fast as you can and check, please"

_"This is the KJ customer service, the number you have dialed is unavailable. The phone may be switched off or outside our coverage area."_

"Nanako..." Dojima muttered as he hung up "Yu...is she..."

"She's in danger!" He tried to plead "Please, we have"

_"Hey, you can't go in there!"_

"Hey, what do you think you're doing!?" Dojima shouted as Yu's friends stomed in

"Nanako-chan's missing!" Yosuke panted

"Wha-!? What do you mean!?" Dojima demanded

"Naoto's on the phone, calling from Nanako-chan's…I mean, your house." Yosuke stated as he switched to speaker-phone

"Shirogane!? You there? What the hell's going on!?" Dojima questioned

"_I'm at your house right now. The front door's open and there's no one inside.…I'm afraid that Nanako-chan and Motoko-san have been kidnapped by one of our serial killers."_

"M-Mom?! Mom's gone?!" Yu gasped "N-No! She wasn't on the Midnight Channel!"

_"Surely you must've known, Dojima-san!? The case isn't over yet!"_

"Why…? Why Nanako!?" Dojima cried "Why Motoko?!"

"Um, it's probably because the media-" Yosuke tried to explain

"Wh-What are you doing?" Adachi asked as Dojima pulled out a phone

_"Traffic Division, Ohta speaking."_

"There's been a kidnapping! Get your men on it immediately! Start with checkpoints along the highway!" Dojima demanded

_"Checkpoints!? Umm, could you explain the situation a little more-"_

"Quit griping and get to it!" Dojima roarared "The victim's are a seven-year-old girl and a forty-two year old woman…my daughter and my sister! My family!"

_"Your family? Wait…what about the scene? What makes you think this is a kidnapping?"_

"Th-That's…look, this could be connected to that multiple murder case!" Dojima shouted

_"How long has she been missing? Have you received any notices or ransom letters?"_

"N-No, but damnit!" Dojima cursed "There's no time for this right now!"

_"Um, a-alright…I'll try contacting each of the departments…"_

"Even if you tell 'em this is connected to the murders, we can't prove it…" Adachi said before Dojima rushed passed him "Wh-Where are you going!?"

"I'm gonna go look for them!" He shouted "If this is connected to that murder case, the top brass won't accept the facts until it's too late. I'm not gonna wait for those clowns!"

"But do you even have any ideas or leads on who took her!?" Adachi cried "If they used a car, there's no way-"

"Shut up! That's why I'm hurrying!" He roared as he ran off

"Augh…what am I gonna do? Dojima-san's run off half-cocked…" Adachi groaned

"Adachi-san, we'll go look for her, too! So please…let him go!" Yosuke pointed to Yu

"Alright" Adachi nodded "I'll try and contact Katsuya-san"

"No need, I just heard!" Katsuya cried as he ran into the room with Nanako and Labrys

"So what's going on?!" Chie questioned

"Whoa, hey… If I let all you guys in here, then I'm really in trouble!" Adachi gaped

"Quit your bitching! Now ain't the time for that shit!" Kanji roared "The hell are we sitting here for when this guy's family's in danger!? You gonna own up if something happens!? Huh!?"

"Kanji-kun!" Naoto tried to call him off "Let's all take a moment to stop and sort out the situation. There's no doubt in my mind that this is a kidnapping by the same culprit who was behind the others. Now. Consider that the front door at Nanako-chan's house was open. I examined it, and found no trace that entry had been forced…meaning the door was willingfully opened"

"That doesn't mean anything!" Yu said "Mom was home! It was Nanako, she didn't check who was there first"

"I also found tire tracks by the Dojima residence" Naoto stated "They size and pattern did not match the tires of Dojima-san's car. It makes me think..."

"You think he's using a car?" Yosuke asked

"Given the efficiency of the culprit's methods, I would assume a vehicle larger than a sedan. However…" Naoto muttered "Each victim was taken at a different scene, yet was thrown into a TV almost immediately after being kidnapped…I would go as far as to say that it took place in front of their houses. This most recent kidnapping adds to the theory. Therefore, the culprit must be taking a TV with him as he goes. So the vehicle must be large enough to house one. But no unusual vehicles have been sighted. I'd expect someone to notice, since most of the victims vanished during the day…"

"So the person had a cat…but it's a car that can't be seen?" Rise questioned

"I think we can rule out the possibility that no one happened to see the vehicle…" Yukiko stated "Especially since it's happened so many times now."

"A car no one would notice…? Is there such a thing? What would it be…?" Chie asked

"A vehicle nobody would notice, large enough to hold a big-screen TV...Christ, Yu, think, THINK!" He shouted at himself "Something like...a truck maybe?"

"When I was kidnapped, I recall being lifted up onto a cold metal surface" Naoto recalled "It's possible that it was the back of a delivery truck!"

"That's right… Now I remember…" Kanji recalled "A delivery came! It was a delivery truck!"

"No one looks twice at a delivery truck, no matter where it's parked…" Rise stated

"But damn it, that doesn't narrow it down!" Yosuke cursed

"I have the description of the man who kidnapped me!" Naoto said "If we can give his appearance to local companies and then-"

"That will take far too long..." Katsuya admitted

"Then what'da hell we supposed to do?!" Labrys cried

"Run out and look for a truck!" Yu shouted as he dashed off

"Yu-kun, wait!" Yumi cried before the group began to chase after him

* * *

"Damn it! Damn it!" Shinya screamed as he heard Police sirens

"Ryotaro!" Motoko yelled as she spotted her brother in the patrol car

"Motoko!" Dojima shouted

"Ryotaro! It's-" She tried to shout but Shinya grabbed her by the mouth and threw her back

"Shut up!" He shouted before he felt Dojima ram the truck "Damn it!"

"Shinya! Stop!" Motoko pleaded "W-Why are you you even doing this?!"

"I HAVE TO!" He shouted as he floored it "IT'S THE ONLY WAY I CAN SAVE YU!"

"STOP!" Dojima roared as he rammed it once more time, causing it to tilt and push the patrol further to left, until both faced the wall...

_**CRASH**_

* * *

"Is-Is that smoke?!" Kanji gaped as the smoke floated up at the end of the shopping district

"An accident?!" Naoto gasped

"Hurry!" Adachi cried as they ran up the bath

...

"Just...get in there..." Shinya muttered as he dragged Motoko's unconscious body away from the wreckage "I'm sorry...I'm so sorry!"

And then he tossed her into the TV which was lying on the ground

"Dojima-san!" Adachi cried as he ran over the unconscious man

"Who's that!?" Yosuke cried as the other man

"That height, hair...that's him!" Naoto shouted "The man who kidnapped me!"

"Stop right there!" Katsuya roared as he pulled out his pistol "In the name of the law, I comm-"

"Don't come any closer" Shinya shouted as he turned and pointed a pistol at the group

Which he immediately noticed his son was a part of

"Y-Yu!"

"H-Huh?!" Yosuke cried "Dude do you know h-"

His question was already answered as he and the rest of the group looked at Yu

Who wore the most shocked and devastated look imaginable on his face

"D-Dad!" He called out, stunning the group

"W-What?!" Chie gasped

"No...no way" Yosuke said in awe

"Yu-kun...is that...your..." Yukiko tried to get out

"Don't come any closer, I'm warning you!" Shinya shouted as tears began to sting his eyes

"No fucking way...this whole time, it was Senpai's dad!?" Kanji called out

"D-Dad, what the fuck?!" Yu roared "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU-"

"I said don't come any closer!" He demanded once more as he cocked the gun

"Senpai's father...was the one who kidnapped me?" Naoto questioned "He's Minazuki's accomplice?"

"Dad, what the hell!?" Yu shouted "What the hell have you done to Nanako?!"

"Put the gun down!" Katsuya shouted

"Shut up! You don't understand!" Shinya sobbed

"Dad..." Yu said as tears ran down his face "Why...why did you do this?!"

...

"I'm sorry Yu..." He sobbed "I'm so sorry"

"Dude..." Daisuke muttered

"This is your last warning!" Katsuya shouted

...

"Don't follow me" Shinya said coldly as he hopped into the TV which laid on the ground

"Dad!" Yu shouted as he towards it

"Yu-san, no!" Katsuya called out as he held him back from jumping into the TV

"Sensei, no!" Teddie cried out "We don't know where that TV leads! We can't jump in after him!"

"Dad!" Yu roared "**DDDDDDDAAAAAAAAAAAAADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!**"


	21. Stairway to Heaven

**STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN**

**INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL**

"You..." Dojima muttered as he opened his eye, noting that was on a hospital bed and that Naoto stood beside him

"Are you all right…?" She asked

"I must look like hell right now…" He groaned "Nanako…she's my reason for living…if I lose her, I might as well be dead, Motoko's gone too...they must be so scared right now…waiting for someone to save them…and… here I am… *cough * *cough * When she needs me most… I'm helpless…what kind of a father am I…? I can't even protect my own family…!"

"Dojima-san…" Naoto muttered

"And all this time...it was him" Dojima growled "Yu's father, Shinya...if anything happens to Nanako…I'll make him pay…! You can save Nanako, right…? I trust you…please… save her for me…! You're the only ones I can turn to right now…please…"

...

"We'll save her, no matter what..." Naoto nodded

**HALLWAY**

"How is he?" Kanji asked Yosuke

"He's in shock..." Yosuke stated "It's like his mind's been completely erased..."

"You can't blame him" Daisuke cut in "This whole time...it was his dad"

"This whole time...the one who kidnapped me was Senpai's father?" Rise questioned

"And he's working with the bastard who killed Kou..." Daisuke growled

"Where is he...?" Yukiko asked

"He said he needed to get some air" Labrys stated

"I..." Chie muttered

"Go" Yosuke said "If anyone should talk to him, it should be you"

...

"Okay" Chie nodded before she made her way to the ground floor. Noticing him standing outside the front entrance, she made her way out to join him "Hey..."

He didn't respond

"Yu-kun?" She questioned as she walked to his side and examined his face

The look of devastation and shock had never left, his eyes still bloodshot and his eyes still wet from his tears

"It was him..." Yu muttered "This whole time..."

"Yu-kun..." Chie said, unable to think of a reply

"W-Why..." Yu mumbled as more tears began to flow "Why would he do this to everyone...to Nanako and Mom?"

"I..." Chie tried to think

"Damn it..." Yu said with clenched teeth as he slammed his eyes shut "Damn it!"

Chie once again was lost for words, so she did the only thing she could

Hold him as he cried...

**LATER**

The two walked home together, Chie not wanting him to be left alone. His eyes still red as the two walked back to the Dojima residence. Chie had never seen him so devastated...

_"All this shit happens to him..." She mentally growled "Why? What did he ever do to deserve it?"_

"Here's fine" He said out of the blue

"Huh?" Chie asked as he stopped in front of an unfamiliar home "Yu-kun, this isn't-"

"This is the home my Mom bought..." Yu stated "I'm gonna stay here tonight"

"Yu-" She tried to talk

"I can't go back there..." He muttered "Not tonight..."

"Then come over to mine!" She stated "I'm sure if I exp-"

"It's okay..." Yu said quietly as he opened the unlocked door "You can-"

"No!" Chie told him sternly "I am _not _leaving you alone right now!"

"I'll be-"

"If there's one thing I hate...it's liar's!" Chie stated "You're _not _fine!...don't push me away...I want to help you..."

"H-How?" He whimpered as tears began again "How the hell can anyone help me with this?!"

"I'm staying with you" Chie stated as he grabbed his arm "Just tonight..."

"You..."

"I'll be here with you tonight" Chie told him as she led him through the door, revealing the empty living room "There's not even any furniture...how do you plan to sleep?"

...

"I just..." Yu sighed "I just don't want to go back to the Dojima house..."

"It's okay..." Chie muttered "We'll use our jackets as pillows"

"Why...why are you doing this?" Yu asked "Won't your parents get concerned?"

"I'm doing this because I love you..." Chie said as she stroked his cheek "As for my parents, I'll tell them I'm staying over at Yukiko's, they won't be worried that way..."

...

"Thank you" Yu muttered as he buried his face into his shoulder and wrapped his arms around her "I...I don't know what I would do without you..."

"You don't have to think about that" She told him as she wrapped her arms around him "I'm here Yu..."

"I...love you" Yu muttered to her ear "Don't...ever leave me...please..."

"I never will" Chie nodded as he and Yu fell to their knees on the hard wooden floor "I'm here...I'll always be here"

**NOVEMBER 6/ JUNES**

"Nanako-chan's on the other side right?" Yosuke questioned "And Motoko-san?"

"Definitely. There's no mistake." Teddie nodded

"The we must focus on saving Nanako-chan and Motoko-san" Katsuya said

"Yeah. We're the only ones who can." Chie nodded

"We'll save her no matter what." Rise said in determination

"I often thought it might be impossible, but we've finally cornered the culprit…" Yukiko stated "We made it this far…we won't let him take Nanako-chan's life!""

"Yeah… This is it! Let's go all-out and get it done!" Kanji shouted

"I made a promise with Nana-chan! I said that we'd play again…and that everything would be okay…I promised her that!" Teddie said

"Yeah, so let's save them." Yosuke nodded "We're doing it for Dojima-san, too. Hehe, he'll owe us another watermelon."

"Regardless, we must do whatever we can with what we have now. This is something only we can accomplish…" Naoto informed the group

"C'mon, we can do this, guys! No problem!" Chie cheered

"Yeah. We do this the same way as always." Yosuke smiled "All we gotta do is find Nanako-chan and Motoko-san before the next foggy day and get them out of there. Nothing to it. Let's keep calm, be careful, and get it done."

...

"Guys...do me a favor..." Yu muttered as the group turned to face him

And witnessed a look of absolute tranquil fury in his eyes

"When we find him, you guys should try to drag him back out the TV before I kill him..."

...

"S-Senpai" Kanji muttered as Yu headed off the TV section

"Is he serious?" Yumi asked

"Yu..." Chie muttered

**TV WORLD**

"Look at this fog...it's thicker than usual" Yosuke noted

"Does this have something to do with all the fuss about the fog lately…?" Yukiko questioned

"Something's weird in here…" Teddie noticed "I think all the commotion in town has been affecting this world, too."

"Well, we need to hurry now." Yosuke said sternly "Rise, can you tell which direction Nanako-chan is in?"

"I sense her…that way." The girl searched with Kanzeon "Wow…what's this warm feeling…?

Senpai, we need to save her! Let's go!"

**ENTRANCE TO HEAVEN**

"This…is Nanako-chan's…?" Yukiko gasped as they observed the Castle

"It's so beautiful…" Rise said in awe "It's like a storybook vision of heaven."

"Like heaven, huh…" Yosuke muttered "Deep down, Nanako-chan must really miss her mom…"

"I'm sure she does. She's only a child…" Yukiko said "We have to do everything in our power to rescue her!"

"Mom must be in there too...I'll need all of you." Yu said

"Of course!" Teddie nodded "We're gonna rescue Nana-chan, no matter what!"

"And we'll find yer old man and give him what's coming to him then!" Labrys shouted

_"Hang on..." Yu pleaded as the group dashed to the entrance "I'm coming..."_

**FLOOR 5**

_"Mom..." A voice echoed_

"That's Nana-chan's voice!" Teddie gasped

_"Mom… Where are you…?_

_Why did you disappear…?_

_Why did you leave me…?_

_No…come back…"_

"Are these… Nanako-chan's feelings…?" Chie questioned

_"But I'm not lonely… I have Dad with me._

_I know he's always late coming home… and he never plays with me because he's so busy…_

_He can't cook or do laundry either…_

_He tries to be nice, though he is a little scary sometimes… but I love him…_

_Big bro is with me now, too… So I'm not alone…_

_I'm not lonely…"_

"A little kid… telling herself she's not lonely so she doesn't fall apart…" Kanji muttered

"You idiot, we'll ruin everything if we act all sad." Yosuke scolded "We gotta greet her with a smile."

"Motoko-san's feelings must not be showing as this isn't her world..." Naoto noted

"Nana-chan…" Teddie whined

"I won't let them die!" Yu shouted as he ran ahead

"H-Hey, wait up!" Yu called

* * *

_"Da-ddy?"_

_"Motoko, he said it!"_

* * *

_"When I grow up, I wanna be just like you daddy!"_

_"You sure Yu? Being an accountant isn't exactly thrilling, hahaha..._

* * *

_"You see that Yu?"_

_"Plane!"_

_"That's right buddy! We'll be flying on one of those in just a few hours!"_

* * *

_"Play with me Daddy!" _

_"Sorry Yu, I gotta work, why don't you go down to the park?"_

* * *

_"Sorry buddy, Me and your Mom gotta work late tonight, put yourself to bed tonight, okay? Make sure to lock up"_

* * *

_"Here's some money for take-out, I can't be here to cook tonight"_

* * *

_"Dad?"_

_"Yu, stop bothering me!"_

* * *

_"I can't believe it...you...cheated on Mom?"_

_"It's none of your business! Just shut up!"_

_"D-Dad!"_

_..._

_"Just go away..."_

* * *

"Bastard..." Yu growled as tears streamed down his face "You...won't get away with this!"

"Wait!" Yosuke called yet again as the group failed to catch up

"Something's not right…there's someone here besides Nanako-chan." Rise noted "It was faint at first, so I couldn't tell for sure… But there's definitely another person here. And whoever this is…their power's getting stronger…"

"Could it be Yu's dad!?" Yosuke gasped

"Perhaps so…" Naoto nodded "They did enter via the same TV...that means that all three of them are in here...It seemed as if he was particularly determined to kidnap Nanako-chan."

"But why…?" Yukiko asked "If he's the real culprit, he must know the dangers of coming into this world…"

"I don't know…" But Nanako-chan may be in grave danger…we must hurry!"

_"N-No…that's not it…I just wanted to live peacefully, that's it…" A male voice echoed_

"Ngh…Nanako-chan's presence is being drowned out…please answer us, Nanako-chan!" Rise pleaded "Don't worry! We're on our way to rescue you right now!"

_"This place...it's no nice and quiet...I wish I could have lived here…together with…"_

"Together…? I-Is he with Nanako-chan!?" Rise panicked "This isn't good, Senpai! Let's hurry on!"

_"I...I had to save Naoto...she's..."_

"M-Me?" Naoto questioned "Why me?"

_"Stop it! Get away! I'm trying to save you!"_

_"I won't...I'll protect you all"_

"Shut up!" Yu roared as he dashed forward, ending up on the top floor

_"Where are you… Mom…? Dad... Save me…"_

"Nanako!" Yu shouted as he arrived in front of the last door which he kicked in

And there was Shinya, standing atop a platform, surrounded by Angel statues, holding Nanako hostage and an unconscius Motoko behind him

"Don't come any closer!" Shinya shouted

"B-Big bro!" Nanako gasped

"Let her go!" Yu demanded

"There he is!" Naoto called as the group entered the room

"Stop it!" Shinya pleaded "I'm doing this to save her! You're all interfering!"

"Huh…? This dude's high or something?" Kanji questioned "Quit talking shit and let go of the girl!"

"S-Stop!" Shinya demanded as he gripped Nanako tighter

"Nngh…" The girl grunted

"Nanako-chan!" Chie called out

"Calm down, Kanji-kun! We can't predict his behavior!" Naoto demanded "We have to keep him talking. If we can discern his intentions, perhaps we can somehow deal with him."

...

"Why are you doing this?" Yu asked

"To save them…" Shinya said back "T-They put you in here to kill you! I'm putting her in to save her!"

"What the hell you even talkin' about?!" Labrys shouted "Let the girl go!"

"No, we must pull his attention away from Nanako-chan!" Naoto called before turning to Shinya "You put the people you saw on the Midnight Channel into this world. Am I correct?"

"N-No..._they _did" Shinya gulped "I only put you in..."

"Why me then?!" Naoto questioned

"I...had to save you" Shinya whimpered

"You didn't save us, dammit! It was the exact opposite!" Kanji shouted

"If they hadn't put you in the TV…how would you have ended up…?" Shinya asked

"How would we…?" Yukiko muttered

"Are you trying to say…we wouldn't have been able to face ourselves?" Rise asked

"What…!? But we nearly died!" Yukiko shouted

"Yes…exactly…" Shinya nodded "They put you in so you would awaken your power..._I _put Naoto and Nanako in to protect them..."

"You kidnapped them…yes or no?" Yosuke bluntly demanded

"Just Naoto and Nanako..." Shinya stated "They did the rest..."

"Damn it, who the hell is _they_?!" Kanji shouted

"I...I can't say" Shinya admitted "If I tell you...they'll kill you"

"Then why are you working with whomever _they _are?!" Naoto shouted

"Because I _have _to!" Shinya shouted "Only then...can I get my family back..."

...

"You'll never get us back" Yu growled

"Yu, stop!" Shinya pleaded "They'll kill you!"

"Not if I kill you first" Yu said coldly as Izanagi-no-Okami appeared above him

"Calm down!" Adachi shouted "He's still holding Nanako-chan!"

"I _WILL _SAVE YOU!" Shinya roared "I..I...

...

An unknown, unreachable place…filled with pleasant fog… I'm a Savior…It's filthy over there…so many evildoers…that's why I'm going to save them… I'm a Savior…a righteous hero…"

"Is that… a Shadow?" Yukiko questioned as Shinya's eyes glowed yellow

"Big bro… I can't… breathe…" Nanako wheezed

"Nanako!" Yu yelled as he ran forward

"Let's do this!" Yosuke yelled as he and Kanji charged forward along with Yu, the three tackling Shinya, knocking Nanako out of his grip

"No! Give her back!" Shinya demanded as he knocked to the ground

"BASTARD!" Yu roared as he smashed his fist into his fathers face over and over again "IT'S NOT ENOUGH THE YOU RUINED MOM'S LIFE IS IT?! I WON'T LET YOU HARM NANAKO!"

"Senpai!" Kanji called out as he and Yosuke pulled him off of Shinya

"Nana-chan!" Teddie cried as he ran over

"Nanako-chan…Nanako-chan!" Yukiko gasped as they picked out the girl

"Motoko-san!" Katsuya ran over

"Katsuya-san, hurry! Let's get them to a hospital as fast as I can!" Adachi stated as he picked up the young girl

"Yes!" Katsuya nodded as he picked up Motoko and ran off

"Please hurry!" Yukiko pleaded

"No! Stop!" Shinya shouted "Give THEM **BAAAAAAACCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKK!**"

"E-Everyone get back!" Teddie shouted "Something's happening!"

Sure enough, shadows began to pour into the room, but instead of attacking, the smutherred Shinya, covering him in a black ooze substance that began to pulse

"What's going on?!" Chie gasped as the ooze surrounded Shinya began to grow and take an inhuman form

"You guys got any suggestions?!" Daisuke cried

"Just one!" Yu roared as Izanagi-no-Okami spun its blade in a circle, forming a while circle of energy behind him "Izanagi-no-Okami! MYRIAD TRUTHS!"

...

**INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL**

"Take it easy..." Yosuke instructed as he sat Yu down on a bench "Doing that takes a lot out of you...you should've known that"

"Nana-chan was so young...she didn't even have another self" Teddie muttered

"It's just like Ayane-chan" Yumi muttered

"Motoko-san didn't seem to have another self either" Naoto noted "That that may be due to her being unconscious for her duration within the TV..."

"And she got caught in all that craziness…" Teddie muttered "I hope she'll be okay…"

"I mean, are the doctors going to be able to help her…?" Yosuke questioned

"Waaaah…I'm worried about Nana-chan!" Teddie sobbed

"But there's nothing more we can do for her…" Chie said sadly

"The possibility of Nanako-chan being targeted…If only I'd been more thorough in putting the facts together!" Naoto growled

"I'm just thankful Adachi-san and Katsuya-san got them to a hospital quick enough..." Yosuke muttered "And Yu took care of that guy before he fused with those shadows"

"What's going to happen to him?" Labrys asked

"The police took him to into protective hospitality" Naoto stated "Where...I do not know..."

"Stop blaming yourself..." Yu said out of the blue "It's no ones fault but his..."

"But… I still…" Naoto sighed

"Alright, enough of this pity party…" Kanji groaned "Is standing around and whining really what we oughtta be doing now? Feeling pathetic, consoling each other…that gonna solve anything!? We gotta believe in them…so stop rehashing what's already done. Get it together, Naoto!"

"Sorry…you're absolutely right." Naoto noted

"This is all that bastard Shinya's fault, and he's behind bars now, right?" Kanji asked "And it ain't like we were too late for Nanako-chan or Motoko-san"

"Yeah…that's true." Yukiko nodded

"I'll come see Nana-chan every day so she'll get better faster!" Teddie said

"That's all we can do right now…" Rise sighed "Gee, Kanji…you sounded cool for a second there."

"Huh? You guys still here?" Adachi questioned as he and Katsuya appeared back in view

"Adachi-san, um…did they find out anything…?" Yukiko asked

"Dojima-san's speaking with the doctor now, but they can't say anything definite until they run some tests on them…not just Nanako-chan and Motoko-san, but the perp, too…who knows when we'll be able to hear his story…?"

"I've contacted the Shadow Operatives and alerted them we have a culprit in custody" Katsuya stated "But...I won't lie to you, we're gonna have hard time making these charges stick..."

"What's that mean?" Yukiko questioned

"I talked with the guys at the station, and it'll be next to impossible to find him guilty in court." Adachi sighed "The whole angle about him putting people into TVs…there's no way that'll stand up in court. No one would believe that…plus, as far as the public and the police are concerned, Minazuki is solely responsible"

"Well, ain't you calm about this." Kanji glared

"I-I'm just telling you the truth." Adachi stuttered

"And you call yourself a cop!? Huh!?" Kanji shouted "If we have to prove to it them then drive down to the station and get a TV, dammit!

"Kanji-kun, ple-" Naoto tried to plead

"Let me go, I need to speak to him!"

"Wha-Dojima-san!" Adachi gasped as he burst out of his room

"Where is he damn it!" Dojima growled as he grabbed Katsuya by the collar "I know he's here!"

"Dojima-san, calm down!" Katsuya tried to calm him before he dashed off "Dojima-san!"

"Uncle!" Yu called out

"What the shit was that about?!" Kanji asked

"S-Shit!" Adachi cursed "That's the way to Shinya Narukami's room!"

"You transported him to the same hospital!?" Yosuke gaped "For crying out loud, he's the suspect in the case!"

"Wh-What are you getting mad at me for? This is the biggest hospital, and he's in no condition to be moved…" Adachi sighed

"Where is his room?!" Yu demanded

"I-I can't tell you that." Adachi groaned

"Just tell us where he is already!" Kanji roared "Dojima-san's on his way, ain't he? You don't know what he's gonna do there if we don't stop him!"

"Kanji-kun, you don't mean…" Chie muttered

"O-Oh god..." Katsuya muttered "T-Top floor in the second surgical ward, furthest room back! Hurry!"

**TOP FLOOR**

"Let me through!" Dojima shouted

"Sir, please stop!" One of the officers holding Dojima back pleaded

"Damn it...how could you do this?!" Dojima roared at the door "To my daughter?! To my sister, _your_ wife!"

"C-Call a doctor!" Another officer called "His wound's have reopened!"

"Let go of me… I need to…" Dojima grunted

"Holy crap! Dojima-san!" Adachi yelped as he came into view "Quick, get him to his room! I'll go alert the doctors!"

"Dojima-san..." Chie muttered as Adachi dragged Dojima away "Was he seriously gonna...?"

"After what that prick to did his family, wouldn't of blamed him" Kanji stated

"Yu-kun?" Yumi questioned as he saw the boy move

And then flung open the doors

"Yu!" Yosuke called as Yu walked into Shinya's room

"Oh shit..." Kanji muttered as the rest of the group ran in too

Spotting Shinya standing next to an open window

"Trying to escape?" Yu asked coldly

"I...I..." Shinya muttered

_BZZZZT_

"Hey, isn't this…!?" Rise gasped as the familiar static from the TV buzzed on

"Midnight..." Yosuke muttered as he check the time on his phone

_"I failed to save her. It's because you got in my way."_

"Another one…!?" Yosuke cried "How!? The real one's right here, and we already beat his Shadow…"

"No… Come to think of it, Narukami never faced his other self." Naoto noted "And we didn't witness his Shadow returning to his body as a Persona, either…perhaps that's why we're seeing this now…"

"What… the…" Shinya gasped

_"I failed. But it wasn't my fault. But how will they see it…?"_

"Wh-What…!?" Shinya stuttered

"Is that what's Namatame's really thinking!?" Chie shouted "Then…he wasn't deranged or anything…he knew what he was doing…!"

"To hell with it, I don't care if you are my best friend's dad, I won't ever forgive you!" Yosuke shouted

"Th-This…please…stop…" Shinya pleaded

"Huh? Stop what? We ain't even done anything yet…or do you want us to do something…? Something fitting for a bastard like you!" Kanji shouted

_"You hate me don't you?" The other Shinya sneered "I have to live...for that new world I was promised..."_

"A new world you were promised?" Daisuke questioned

_"They gave me a mission, they wouldn't kill them if I saved them...I had to save Nanako...I had to save Naoto"_

And then the Midnight Channel ended...

"My god…" Naoto muttered in shock

"P-Please stop…" Shinya begged

"He wants us to stop. What should we do?" Yosuke asked coldly

"Wh-What do you mean…?" Chie asked

"We can't let this bastard do whatever he pleases." Kanji glared

"Still…what are you going to do?" Yukiko asked

"No way I'm going to walk out of here doing nothing…" Yosuke said

"I-I understand, but…" Chie nodded

"This is what's going to happen" Yu cut in as he grabbed Shinya by the collar

"Y-Yu-kun?!" Chie gasped

"You're going to tell me everything and if I don't like what I hear..." Yu said coldly as he help Shinya against the TV in the room "You're going in there..."

"Y-Yu!" Shinya gasped

"Dude, what the f-" Daisuke attempted to curse

"Everyone…listen to me." Yosuke interrupted "If we're gonna do this…now is our only shot. We won't get a second chance. At this rate, the guy's gonna get off the hook… And he'll go around _saving_ people again!"

"I told you, all I did was save Naoto and Nanako!" Shinya cried

"Bullshit! We just heard what you're really thinking!" Kanji snapped

"If that happens, it'll be just like Senpai...and Kou…who knows how many innocent people will die this time?" Yosuke growled "I can't let something like that go…"

"B-But… Yosuke…" Chie muttered

"All we have to do is push him inside the TV…" Yosuke said "That's it. We do that one thing, and this is all over."

"O-Oh my god, I can't watch this!" Yumi gasped

"If any of you want no part in this, just leave the room. I'm not gonna force you to stay." Yosuke said

"Yu, stop!" Chie yelled to him "You're a lot of things but I know you're not a murderer!"

"You said it was only Naoto and Nanako...why?" Yu growled "Nanako I understand, she's family. But why Naoto?"

"Once they told me who she was and she was in danger, I had to save her!" Shinya cried "I had to!"

"Why?!" Naoto demanded "What affiliation do you have with me?!"

"I had to save you, you're Ami's daughter!" Shinya shouted

"W-What?! How do you know my Mother's name?!" Naoto shouted

"Yeah, how _do _you know?!" Yu yelled

"I knew he-I...I..."

"Answer the fucking question!" Kanji roared

"She-"

"TELL ME WHY!" Yu roared

"SHE'S MY DAUGHTER!"

...

"What...?!" Yosuke spat

"Naoto...is my daughter" Shinya repeated "The affair I had sixteen years ago...it was with her mother, Ami Shirogane..."

"I..." Chie gasped

"No fucking way, that's a load of crap!" Kanji roared "He's just bullshittin'!"

"No...that can't be..." Naoto quietly muttered

"Do you honestly expect me to believe that?!" Yu spat

"I-It's true!" Shinya pleaded as he reached out for his nearby jacket and pulled something out

"Drop it!" Labrys shouted

"I-It's just a photograph!" Shinya yelped as he threw it at Yu

And he instantly recognized the photo that his mother had discovered, that led to their separation.

"This is..." Yu muttered

"That's..." Naoto gaped as she observed the photo, specifically, the woman Shinya had his arm around "That's my mother!"

"N-No way!" Chie cried

"There's writing on the back..." Yosuke noted as Yu flipped the photo around and read aloud;

_To my dearest Shinya;_

_I understand my sudden contact by sending you this photo may seem strange after we ended our affair nine months ago...but it is exactly because of those nine months that I write_

_One week ago, I gave birth to a daughter_

_**Our **__daughter_

_I've ran every test there is, it's 100% certain that she is yours. I am writing to let you know this as I believe you deserve to know_

_However, I request that you do not interfere in her life or mine. My husband believes the baby to be his and I wish to keep it this way. Please do not interfere with my daughters life, just as i have not interfered with your son's..._

_Though I regret my infidelity, I will always cherish our daughter...I beg of you, do not look for me or her. Let us lead out lives separately..._

_She has your eyes y'know...and my hair...I will always love her but I will raise her without knowledge of you. But I will leave you with one piece of knowledge about her and I pray you leave it at this_

_Her name is Naoto _

_Goodbye_

_\- Ami_

...

"She's my daughter..." Shinya stated "Yu...Naoto is your half-sister..."


	22. Bloodlines

**BLOODLINES**

"No..." Naoto meekly stated as she stepped away "That...can't be..."

"No way..." Yosuke said as he observed the text on the photo "How could..."

"You're...shittin' me right?!" Kanji spluttered "Senpai and Naoto are brother and sister?!"

"That...can't be true, can it?" Rise questioned

"I...I...I have to leave" Naoto panted as she dashed out of the door

"Naoto-kun, wait!" Yukiko cried

"Hey, wait up!" Chie shouted as she ran after her

"Naoto!" Kanji yelled as he followed too

"Dude...?" Daisuke tried to talk to Yu who just stood there, his expression unchanging as he stared at the photo

"Yu?" Yosuke questioned, as the boys head dipped down

"Oi, Yu-kun..." Labrys muttered

...

"Yu...?" Shinya questioned as Yu's arm dropped down to his side and he let the photo fall

...

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Yu screamed as he smashed his fist into Shinya's face

"Stop!" Yosuke cried as Yu pounced on his father

"You bastard!" Yu roared

"Alright, that's a'nuff" Labrys sighed as she pulled Yu off of him

"Let me go!" Yu shouted as he struggled in vain against Labrys' robot frame

"Come on you!" Labrys grunted as she pulled Yu away

"Damn it, let me go Labrys!" Yu shouted as Labrys dragged him out of the room

"What do we do now?" Daisuke asked

"Let's leave for now...we all need time to cool off" Yukiko suggested

"Yeah..." Yosuke nodded before glaring at Shinya "We'll come back for you later..."

...

"God..." Shinya whimpered as the group departed the room "What have I-"

"Well now..."

"Y-You!" Shinya gasped as the Attendant appeared before him "H-How...when did you get here!?"

"I have my ways..." The Attendant chuckled "But I was _always _here..."

"W-What do you want?!" Shinya screamed

"You didn't inform them about us, well done" The Attendant smiled as he picked Shinya up "In response, I'll help you out"

"W-Wait! AHHHHHHH!" Shinya yelled as The Attendant lobbed him into the TV, sending him plummeting through

"Don't worry, I still find you useful" The Attendant chuckled

* * *

"Naoto!" Kanji shouted as the girl ran down the hall, him and Chie in pursuit

"Naoto-kun, stop!" Chie cried out, but was surprised when she did just that

"Can't breath...can't-" She panted as she held herself against the wall, before vomiting

"Uh, clean up!" Kanji called out to nearby staff

"I have to get home..." Naoto stated "I have to..."

"Hey, calm down!" Chie pleaded but Naoto tried to speed off again

"Hey, stop damn it!" Kanji shouted as he grabbed the back of her jacket

"Let me go..." She muttered "I have to go see Grandfather..."

"Calm down first!" Kanji instructed

"H-How can I?!" Naoto cried "I..my...father is that man?! I-"

"Look, I get it...you're not the only one surprised by this" Kanji told her "We-"

"How could you possibly understand?!" Naoto belted "I...I...need to get home now..."

"Wait, please!" Chie called out as the girl took off again

...

"Leave her"

"Huh?!" Chie questioned

"Leave her" Kanji repeated "If she needs her answers that bad, just let her go an get them..."

"Kanji-kun..." Chie muttered

* * *

"Calmed down yet?" Labrys asked as the group stood outside the room

"No" Yu darkly stated

"Look Bro...I get that you're pissed" Yosuke sighed "And yeah, we're all a little shell shocked by the news, but nothing good's gonna come from beating the shit out of your dad..."

"All we can do is rely on the Police now" Rise sighed "We-"

"SENSEI!"

"Wha-Teddie?!" Yosuke called as Teddie ran out of the room

"HE'S GONE! SENSEI'S DAD IS GONE!"

"What!?" Yu yelled before he stormed back into the room "Where did he go?!"

"Did he go out of the window?!" Yosuke questioned as he ran over and looked out

"Did he..." Yukiko muttered as she gazed at the TV

"You don't think..." Daisuke mumbled

"He wouldn't have...would he?" Yumi questioned

...

"We can't go in after him..." Rise said to the group "It's too dangerous..."

"We...damn it!" Yu roared as he smashed his fist into the wall

**SHIROGANE ESTATE**

_"Ah, Mistress Naoto, where are-"_

"Grandfather!" Naoto shouted as he stormed into her Grandfather's study

"Naoto?" He questioned "What's wro-"

"You knew didn't you?!" She shouted "Now it all makes sense why you were so hesitant with Yu-senpai!"

"What do you mean?" He asked

"Don't lie to me!" Naoto screamed "You knew all along that Yu-senpai was my brother!"

...

"How did you find out?" He sighed

"Shinya Narukami, my..._father_, told me!" She shouted, stunning him "H-How...how could you not tell me this?!"

...

"Why?" He asked "What benefit could come from me informing you of this? How would this benefit y-"

"I DESERVED TO KNOW!" She shouted

...

"You're right..." He sighed before he pulled out a file from the desk "This is your birth certificate...listed on it is-"

Before he finished, Naoto grabbed it out of his hands and opened it up

_NAME: NAOTO SHIROGANE_

_D.O.B: APRIL 27, 1995_

_MOTHER: AMI SHIROGANE_

_FATHER: SHINYA NARUKAMI_

...

"So it's all true then..." Naoto mumbled

"This the first copy of your birth certificate" He stated as he took it off her "A further revision of it changed Shinya Narukami to Ryosuke Sanada, your mother's husband...the man who believed himself to be your father"

"I..." Naoto muttered

"Ami and Ryo's marriage began to deteriorate as both found themselves spending time at work instead of home, the lack of contact or affection drove Ami away and the two separated, it was during that time that she met Shinya Narukami and began an affair that continued on until her assignment in Tokyo ended.

Returning to Inaba, she and Ryo agreed to give their marriage another shot, and soon afterwards, Ami came to the realization that she was pregnant.

Ryo was overjoyed, so overjoyed that he did not notice the clear troubling aura around her. I asked her and she explained everything. She knew the baby was Shinya's.

I looked up Shinya Narukami, discovered his file photo from his work, his address, his phone number, I was fully intent on making his life a living hell but Ami convinced me otherwise, stating that Shinya had a wife and son of his own...

You were born shortly afterwards, your birth certificate listed Shinya as your father, but I quickly secured it and replaced it with a file claiming Ryo to be your father. After that...we forgot...from the day you were born until the day he died, Ryo truly believed he was your father..."

...

"I can't be here" Naoto said as she turned away

"I never told you this to protect you!" He called out

"I can't...I can't!" Naoto shouted as she ran out

...

"S-Sir?" A servant questioned as she poked her head through the door

"Forget everything you heard if you wish to keep your job" He said coldly

"Y-Yessir" She bowed

* * *

"Oh god..." Naoto panted as she ran down the shopping district "I...I..."

"N-Naoto!" Came a farmiliar voice that she realized was Kanji who started to pursue her "Hey, wait up!"

"J-Just..." She stuttered as Kanji gabbed onto her shoulder "Let me g-"

"Hey..." He said, oddly tenderly "Listen...this must be a lot for you, and I can't say I know what you're going through...but y'know...we're all here for you. It's just like Yu-senpai says..."

"He...he really is the magnet that holds this group together isn't he?... Yu-senpai...or perhaps I should call him Brother..." Naoto said with a small chuckle "I...I..."

...

"I don't know what to do..." Naoto groaned as she clutched her head "I...I...can't go home tonight"

...

"W-Well, if I explain it to 'Ma...I'm sure she wouldn't mind if you...stayed over for the night" Kanji said with a furious blush

"That's sweet of you..." Naoto smiled "But...I think I should go see Yu-senpai first"

"Y-Yeah, that's cool" Kanji nodded "He's still at the hospital..."

"Thank you Kanji-kun" Naoto said with an affectionate gaze "If I hadn't run into you, I'd just be running through the streets all night"

"N-No problem" He gulped

**INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL**

"Her condition isn't as serious as your Cousin or your Uncle, your mother should be up soon" The Nurse told him

"Thank god" Yu sighed happily

"You're exhausted" Chie noted "You should go home..."

"Can...I not stay here?" Yu asked the nurse "I-"

"Yu-kun" Chie muttered as she took his hand "Come on...I don't want you to be here tonight"

"She's right, it's not healthy" The Nurse said "Hospital's are for the sick, you should go home"

...

"Okay" Yu nodded with a sigh as he and Chie turned around to leave

And discovered Naoto right there in there path

"Hello..." Naoto meekly greeted

"Hey..." Yu muttered

"So...this is a turn-up" Naoto sighed "You and me, turns out...we were brother and sister this whole time"

"Well, only Half-Siblings..." Yu said with a small chuckle "But yeah, seems like some kinda twist from an anime..."

...

"Do you two want to be left alone?" Chie asked

"No, it's fine" Naoto told her "I simply wish to state...you don't have to think any different of me. You don't have to think of me as...your sis-"

"I...I...I really don't know what to think" Yu sighed "I'm still reeling from the fact that you're my..."

...

"You must hate me...don't you?" Naoto asked "The affair that split your family apart...was with my mother, and I'm a product of that affair..."

"I just want you to know something" Yu said to her "I don't hold any animosity to you"

"You...don't?" Naoto gasped

"It's not your fault that dad..._our _dad is a piece of shit" Yu told her "He...escaped through the TV earlier"

"He-?! Damn it!" She cursed "He...damn it all..."

"N-Naoto-kun!" Chie gasped as Naoto began to sob

"How...how could this all happen in one day?" She cried "I..."

"Take a seat..." Yu said as he gently moved her to a seat

"I'm sorry...you're the one who's had to deal with family issues today" Naoto whimpered

"We both have..." Yu sighed as he sat beside her "Family is a complicated thing"

...

"I'll should get some coffee or something" Chie yawned

"You can go home" Yu told her "I'll be fine..."

"No, no" She sighed as she sat beside him "I'll stay...I don't want to leave you alone"

"Your parents will get worried" Yu groaned

"I'll tell them I'm staying with Yukiko again" Chie shrugged

"They'll eventually realize you're not there" Yu groaned back

"Naoto-kun, don't you th-huh?" Chie began to ask

"She's asleep..." Yu realized the girl was quietly snoring

"W-What do we do...?" Chie asked but then gasped as Yu picked Naoto up bridal style "W-What are you doing?!"

"What...?" Yu questioned "Guy can't carry his little sister when she passes out?"

**NOVEMBER 7**

_"The Police Investigation for the kidnapper continues on as the suspect mysteriously vanished from his hospital room, the suspect, whose identity has not been revealed to the public, escaped from the hospital by unknown methods-"_

"Nngh..." Naoto groaned as she rubbed her eyes, arising from the couch she asleep on with a thin blanket covering her, observing her surroundings, she realized she was in the Dojima home "I-"

"Morning" Yu greeted, still in his sleep clothes

"Senpai?" Naoto questioned

"I think we're past _Senpai _at this point" Yu said as laid a cup of coffee down

"Why am I here?" Naoto asked

"You fell asleep at the hospital, couldn't just leave you there so I carried you here" Yu stated

"I see..." Naoto muttered with a small blush "It's just...I promised Kanji-kun I would stay at his last night"

"Huh?"

"O-Oh, nothing!" Naoto gasped "I-..."

"I have to admit, I didn't want to come back here...but I couldn't take you to that place my mom bought, no furniture" Yu sighed "But I-"

"I'm sorry I caused you such distress" Naoto sighed as she took a sip of her coffee "I've been nothing but a burden"

"It's okay...but I feel you should know, I found this in the mailbox this morning" Yu said as he threw down a letter

"This is-This phantom thief malarky again?!" Naoto groaned as she read it "I don't have time for this...but if this was in your mailbox-"

"Then this..._Phantom Thief k_nows where I live..." Yu noted

"I can't take this, I'll find this man and-" Naoto growled

"We should just do it..." Yu stated "It'll get our minds off...him"

"Are you sure?" Naoto asked

"I promised I'd help" Yu nodded

"I-I see" Naoto gulped as she returned to the letter "Though I am still unsure as to why this thief is targeting you too...let's see;_ When the banks close, the fruit tree grows. By the large seven at the third is the spot I chose_...more cryptic this time. Well, I anticipated that. The first thing that comes to mind with _fruit tree_ is the original card. But the second sentence..._by the seven, at the third_...what do these numerical values mean...?"

"Seven and three...a clock face?" Yu asked

"No, the positions don't seem to be the significance" Naoto denied "But the numbers...seven and three _When the banks close, the fruit tree grows_...Look at the third and seventh words..._Banks_ and _tree_. In other words, by the large tree at the banks is the spot I chose!...A-Anyway, let's search for the biggest tree at this river's banks!"

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"I knew it... This watch brings back memories..." Naoto sighed as she held a digital watch, slightly large for a child's wrist. This is pretty advanced, you know. It's one of the seven tools of the detective. It has an extremely strong backlight. You can use it to blind the enemy...I modified it when I was a child. I've always loved this sort of thing, ever since childhood. I preferred robots and cars to dolls and teddy bears...I like high places, so I had a secret base in the trees..."

"Your shadow makes a lot of sense now" Yu said with a small chuckle

"A-Anyway" Naoto panicked "I...why couldn't I have been born male...? It would have been much easier for me... I could have done what I wanted to with gusto...It's funny, isn't it...?"

...

"Your gender doesn't matter" Yu told her

"Sen...Yu-san..." Naoto muttered before smiling sadly "Now that I have people who'll say that me...what right do I have to complain?"

"Hey, there's something there..." Yu noted something that was taped to the next tree

"It's...another card" Naoto said as she pulled it off the tree "It appears we're up for another challenge..._Jury to not rest, or rout for fable. Minus 40, Minus 4_. The sentence as written is gibberish...is this part of the riddle...? And this... _Minus 40, Minus 4_...on its own, it means nothing. Perhaps the _minus_ part is important..."

"Minus...maybe subtract 40 and 4?" Yu suggested

"Subtract 40?" Naoto questioned before her eyes lit up "Aha! Subtract 40 from the sentence..._Jury to not rest, or rout for fable_.From there you subtract 40 and 4...notice the unnatural comma in the phrase...It corresponds to the two numbers. Subtract the letters in _forty_ from the first part, and the ones in _four_ from the second! What remains is: _ju n es, t able_"...Junes, table! That's it! Let's go!"

**JUNES**

"I see..." Naoto sighed as she pulled out something taped to the underside of a table, revealing it to be a large ballpoint pen "This is another of the seven detective tools I made...you can use it as a normal pen, but it also has a penlight and a miniature telescope. I thought I had lost this. I didn't think Grampa still had it...hmhm, neither my grampa nor myself can stand to throw things away...when this pen was still mine...I was just a child, dreaming of becoming a detective. But being a man or a woman...I never thought about it. The lack of peers to compare myself to might have contributed to that. I had no friends...I was quite the outsider then, too. But...why is it that, compared to the time I spent utterly alone...I worry more now that I'm with you and the others? I feel that...I'm undergoing a change."

"People change, Naoto" Yu told her "For better or for the worse..."

"I see...I suppose that's how it goes" Naoto said piteously "The need to change...and the desire to remain the same... they're mixed together...and it scares me."

"I've changed a lot..." Yu told her "I opened up to people, changed my hair..."

"Yes, I noticed...it was short when we first met, now it's like a mop on your head" Naoto chuckled as she observed Yu's hair which now reached down to the bottom of his shoulder blades

"Change isn't always a bad thing" Yu told her "It's who _you _are that defines you...not your bloodline"

...

"You speak such wise words" Naoto smiled "I see why you were designated leader..."

"If this is the same as the last time..." Yu muttered as he searched under the table "Ah, here it is"

"A-Another challenge?" Naoto asked as Yu handed her the card "N-No...it reads..."

_Meet me at the Samegawa Riverbank_

"Hurry!" Yu shouted as the two ran off

**SAMEGAWA RIVERBANK**

"That must be him!" Naoto shouted as she and Yu arrived at the riverbank "W-Wait, no, that's...Yakushiji-san?"

"T-That's the guy who gave me the first card!" Yu said to her

"W-What?!" Naoto questioned as they arrived before the man "Yakushiji-san, is this true?"

"Indeed..." Yakushiji sighed

"Then this whole _Phantom Thief _business...the break in? It was all a farce!?" Naoto asked

"In a sense...it was a test, for the both of you" Yakushiji stated

"W-Why?" Yu asked "Why involve me too?"

"My master has been terribly saddened by Naoto-sama's state of affairs lately." Yakushiji informed him "Lacking acquaintances to confide in, she devotes every fiber of her being to work...my master wanted Naoto-sama to regain the joy she felt in days past. To regain the feelings when all that she wanted was to be a detective, regardless of her heritage or gender...you were involved at my master's discretion, as he wished to discover if you were to be trustworthy. If you help her..."

"Since I'm Shinya Narukami's son...correct?" Yu asked

"Indeed...and by extent, that makes you Naoto-sama's brother." Yakushiji said before he held out the card "Master Shirogane wished me to give you this, it's the final challenge

...

"Very well..." Naoto grumbled slightly as she took the card

"I'll be taking my leave now..." Yakushiji said as he did just that

"_I did what you can't stand to at a place you'd be fond of. But underneath, rather than inside_." Naoto read "A place I'd be fond of?"

"Someplace high maybe?" Yu questioned "You did tell me of your _secret base_ in the tree's"

"You remembered" Naoto chuckled "The highest place around here is...the hill. Next, what I _can't stand_ to do. There are several possiblities, but..."

"Throwing things away?" Yu suggested

"That's right! Did I mention that before...?" Naoto said with an embarrassed smile "Considering what's at the hill, the most likely answer is the trash can...I have an inkling of what might be there. Let's go, Senpai."

**HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"I forgot this thing even existed." Naoto said as she pulled out of the trash can "It's the last of the seven tools... The _Detective's Pocketbook_. All the things I had forgotten about are packed in here...I think Grampa wanted to remind me of them. This childish game...he's selfish indeed. Forcing me to recall all this now...I was trying so hard...not to be underestimated, not to be condescended to..."

"Naoto..." Yu muttered as the girl began to whimper

"If I solved this town's murder case, then everyone would accept me...they would acknowledge me as the 5th in the Shirogane lineage of detectives...That's what I told myself.

Naoto: I just wanted to be accepted. I wanted to be needed. That's why I fretted and stood on my tiptoes...and focused only on solving the case... but the original reason I wanted to become a detective...it was because mysteries intrigued me...and I could help people by solving them. That's all. I remember now...do you recall the time I faced myself in the TV world? It was my task to accept the self who yelled, _I want a reason for me to stay_...but my _reason to stay_ was not solely to solve the crime. You...everyone...gave me a reason...you gave me a place to stay..." Naoto smiled through her tears "I have to be an adult...I have to be a man...with that way of thinking, I was running from myself. I don't need to look for something to change or something to accomplish...I only need...to have faith in myself...I finally think I can accept myself. That I'm a woman...that I haven't yet become the detective I wanted to be...I...I am a woman...and a detective...one who is seeking the truth with you and the others

_CLINK_

_**NAOTO'S STRONG WILL THAT ALLOWED HER TO ACCEPT AND OVERCOME HER WEAKNESS HAS AWAKENED HER HEART'S TRUE POWER. NAOTO'S PERSONA HAS BEEN REBORN...! SUKUNA-HIKONA HAS TRANSFIGURED INTO YAMATO TAKERU!**_

"This potential...was still dormant within me." She observed "I wasn't considering the things that I should have. The people who care about me, as well as my own self...when I'm with you, I feel fearless."

"Naoto" Came a voice that called to her

"G-Grampa!" Naoto gasped as the old man walked towards the pair "What are you doing here?!"

"I wished to be here as you came to your realization..." He stated as he stood before them and then locked his eyes on Yu "You must be Yu Narukami..."

"And you're Naoto's Grandfather..." Yu said back

"Sadao Shirogane...at your service" The old man nodded "I'm here to find out the answer to two questions, first is how Naoto would be after the last challenge, which has been answered and now I must ask for the answer to the second question"

"And that would be...?" Naoto questioned

"What is this man to you?" He asked her

"W-What?" Naoto stuttered

"What is Yu Narukami to you?" He echoed

"What do you-" Yu tried to intercept before Naoto held him back

"He's...Yu-senpai" She told him "He helped me discover who I truly am...he helped me in ways I never knew I could be helped. He's my friend...and while I do not think of Shinya Narukami to be my father...I couldn't ask for a better brother than Yu Narukami"

"N-Naoto..." Yu gaped

"I see...and you" Sadao said as he turned to Yu "Do think of Naoto as a sister?"

...

"I've known for a while now that I had a sibling out there, I never would've guess in a million years it would be Naoto" Yu explained "But I knew one thing, that if I ever met them, I wouldn't blame them for anything. If I ever met them...I would get to know them, listen to their side, learn how they lived...and then I would decide if I wanted them in my life. And yeah, now I know...I want Naoto in my life, she's my family, she's my sister"

"S-Senpai..." Naoto muttered in awe

"I see then" Sadao nodded "I will be taking my leave..."

"Grampa?" Naoto questioned as the old man began to depart

"Farewell Naoto..." The man said as he walked down the path

...

"So...what now?" Yu asked

"The...challenges are over now..." Naoto said "Sen...no, I suppose I can stop calling you Senpai now...brother"

"Yeah" Yu smiled "C'mon Sis...let's go get some breakfast"

**GAS STATION**

"When will this all end...?" Shinya muttered

"Oh shut up" Sho groaned "You've been whining ever since he threw you into the TV, just be grateful he dragged you out too"

_"Shirogane slut...if she wasn't already dead, I'd kill her!"_

"W-What was that?!" Shinya cried

"None of your business, now sit down..." Sho glared

_"All of them deserve to die...all of them!"_

"Indeed..." The Attendants voice rang "Don't worry...it will happen soon"

"W-What's going on, who's he talking to?!" Shinya shouted

"Our little TV tosser...people into...guy..." Sho muttered "The guy throwing people into TV's..."

"W-Who is it?" Shinya asked

"That matters not" The Attendant said as he walked into the room "All that matters is that we will soon end it all...the plan is almost fulfilled"

"'Bout fucking time..." Sho groaned

"W-What's going to happen?" Shinya asked

"We will bring death to the world" The Attendant stated

"W-Why?!" Shinya shouted "Even after so long...I don't understand why you're doing this!"

...

"Do you know why?" The Attendant asked "Because if you could see humanity for what it is, you couldn't maintain your sanity. All you can perceive is the outer layer of humanity. If you could see within them, you couldn't even manage to stand. Being able to see the truth of humans mean you're forced to see the world's fragility and uncertainty. The ground is like it's not there, and the sky seems about to fall at any moment. You don't know that they can end everything, that the whole world could perish in an instant. That is what it means to see humanity for what it really is...I'll show you. I'll face humanity...just as my _father_ did long ago"

* * *

Sorry about the long wait guys...well, a few days isn't long _BUT IT IS BY THIS FICS STANDARDS_

The reason? I found my old copy of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and have been plowing right through it.

Speaking of...

Yu's hair has changed yet again AND YES, I KNOW THIS IS REDUNDANT SEEING AS THIS ISN'T A VISUAL MEDIUM AND THUS NOTING THESE CHANGES HAS NO POINT, BUT I WANT _MY _YU TO BE DIFFERENT FROM THE CANON YU. SO NOW YU HAS THE HAIR OF RICHTER BELMONT FROM CASTLEVANIA SYMPHONY OF THE NIGHT EXCEPT SILVER INSTEAD OF BROWN. THIS IS THE LAST TIME IT'LL CHANGE, OKAY!

(Caps lock off)

Goodnight!


	23. The Long Search Ends

**THE LONG SEARCH ENDS**

**NOVEMBER 8/ INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL**

"I'm glad you're doing better..." Yu smiled at his mother

"I'm so glad you're okay" Motoko smiled as she laid in the hospital bed "But I still don't understand...how did Shinya do that to Nanako"

"I'll explain everything when you get better" Yu told her "But...for now, there's something I have to tell you"

"What is it?" Motoko asked

"Naoto..." Yu called as the girl entered the room

"Oh hello, Naoto-chan" Motoko greeted "What brings you here?"

"Ma'am...I..." Naoto gulped

"Is something troubling you?" Motoko asked

"I...I...this says it better than any words can" Naoto sighed as she handed her a photo

"This is..." Motoko muttered as she realized it was the photo she discovered that led to her separation from Shinya "...Why are you showing me this?"

"Read the back..." Yu said as Naoto took off her hat and bit her lip

"The back...?" Motoko questioned as she flipped over and began to read "To my dearest...gave birth...?...d-daughter?"

...

"Naoto..." Motoko said in astonishment as she looked at the girl

"It's...all true ma'am" Naoto whimpered

"Naoto...is dad's daughter" Yu said "She...listen, please...don't blame her for anything, it's not her fault she-"

"You poor girl..."

"E-Excuse me?" Naoto stuttered

"Come here..." Motoko said as she reached out to the girl

"M-Ma'am?!" Naoto gaped as Motoko wrapped her in a hug

"If you were Shinya's...you should have just told me" Motoko told her

"I...I didn't find out myself until a few days ago" Naoto informed her "I...I'm so sorry...my mother is the reason for your separation from your husband, I-"

"I don't blame anyone except Shinya..." Motoko told her as she broke the hug "I guess this makes you my Step-Daughter, huh? I am still married to Shinya after all..."

"I-I...suppose" Naoto blushed

"Come on..." Motoko smiled "Take a seat...let's talk"

* * *

"I really wish you would just wake up..." Yosuke sighed as he sat beside Ayane's comatose body "Come on...it's not even funny anymore"

...

"Come on...say something" Yosuke groaned as he buried his head in his hands "Please just..."

"Yosuke-kun" A nurse comforted him "Maybe it'd be best if you weren't here..."

"I...I..." Yosuke tried to speak

"Come on, this is not an enjoyable place, you should go" The nurse said as she practically shooed Yosuke out

"Alright, alright" Yosuke groaned

_SLAM_

"Damn it..." Yosuke cursed as the Nurse slammed the door shut

"What's wrong?" Yukiko asked

"They kicked me out..." Yosuke growled "I...just..."

"You really need to stop this" Yukiko told him "Blaming yourself..."

"I'm not!...I'm...mad I can't do anything" Yosuke sighed "I thought all my problems would disappear when I got my Persona, instead...if anything, it lead to more...I..."

"We got these powers to save people, if you start thinking like that...that's exactly what Minazuki wants" Yukiko told him

"I know..." He grumbled "I just...I don't know what I want, I just..."

...

"I wish I could just...be happy, y'know?" Yosuke chuckled "Like Yu and Chie...those guys...got it worked out huh?"

...

"O-Oh..." Yosuke muttered as he turned to Yukiko "You're okay with them, huh?"

"Yeah" Yukiko nodded "It was...a while ago, I'm over it"

"We both suck at this..._love_ crap, don't we?" Yosuke sighed "I lost Saki..."

"Hey, don't-" Yukiko said as she placed her hand on his shoulder

"I...damn it all, I wish I could just..." Yosuke cursed "Argh! I don't even know!"

"It's okay to be frustrated" Yukiko told him "I wasn't exactly happy when I found out about Yu and Chie, but I-I wish...that...god, love is so stupid"

"Yeah..." Yosuke nodded as he looked at her "It's so...stu..."

...

"Yeah..." Yukiko muttered as she looked at him

"You know...I'd...never do what Yu did to you" He told her "What he did to you...If...if I had feelings for someone else...I-I'd tell you"

"D-Do you...?" Yukiko asked "I mean...hypothetically...if..."

"I don't...no..." Yosuke said with a small chuckled "I'd...I..."

...

"I'd never do that to you..."

...

"Yosuke-kun..." Yukiko muttered as she looked into his eyes

"Yukiko..." Yosuke mumbled as he inched his face closer to hers

_BANG_

"Ahh!" Yukiko yelped

"Shit" A Nurse grumbled as she picked up the object she dropped

"Ah...ahh..." Yosuke stuttered, trying to remember his words

"I-I'm going to go see Nanako-chan" Yukiko gulped as she scattered away

...

"Damn it all" Yosuke groaned

**NOVEMBER 9/ HOSPITAL**

"Is it really true Naoto-chan?" Nanako weakly asked "Are you really Big Bro's little sister?"

"Y-Yes" Naoto nodded "Though we only share the same father, so we're half-siblings"

"That's so cool...!" The girl smiled "I guess...since me and Big Bro are family...that makes you my Big Sis, huh?"

"H-Huh?!" Naoto questioned

"Yeah, that's right" Yu smiled

"W-Wait!" Naoto gasped

"We should...play together when I get out" Nanako said

"That's enough for now" The Nurse said to them "She needs her rest"

"Alright" Yu nodded before turning to his cousin "We'll be back tomorrow, okay?"

"Bye Big Bro...Big Sis..." Nanako waved

...

"She...at least she's awake" Naoto sighed as they exited the room

"Yeah..." Yu nodded

"How is she...?" Dojima asked as he approached "They won't let me in...says I'm interfering, she's _my _daughter damn it..."

"She's doing better...not by much, but it's something" Yu told him

"I...I see...right" Dojima sighed "Damn..."

"We'll do out very best to find Shinya Narukami" Naoto told him

"If...If what you showed to me really happened and I wasn't having some demented fever dream" Dojima muttered "Then he's in that...world in the TV, correct?"

"We assume so, yes" Naoto sighed "Only...we had Rise-chan scope it out and no results came...it's possible he's already escaped out somehow"

"Damn it..." Dojima cursed "That father of yours is a real piece of work"

"Yes...I know" Naoto sighed before panicking "I-I mean-"

"Relax, Motoko told me the whole story" Dojima explained "I have to say...no one's more surprised than me to find out we're family"

"W-Well technically..." Naoto gulped "I'm not related to the Dojima family by blood but rather-"

"If there's anything this guys taught me..." Dojima smiled with a nod at Yu "It's; just 'cause you don't have the same blood running through your veins, doesn't mean you're not family"

...

"I see...I appreciate that" Naoto bowed

"C'mon you two...you shouldn't be spending your days at a hospital" Dojima said

"Bye Uncle" Yu waved as they departed

...

"It's so...strange to me" Naoto muttered "Just a few months ago...I had no friends and I thought all I had left in the world was Grampa...now, I have everyone...my friends...and I have a brother"

"It was the same for me" Yu told her "Before I came to Inaba, no friends, practically no family...now I have all you guys, and with you and Nanako, I have _two _sisters"

"So...maybe we're blessed after all" Naoto chuckled

**NOVEMBER 10**

"Naoki?" Yu questioned

"Oh hey..." Naoki greeted as Yu and Naoto approached him "Who's this, your girlfriend?"

"N-No..." Naoto blushed "I'm..."

"Relax, I know, you're his half-sister right?" Naoki chuckled

"Y-Yes..." Naoto gaped "How did-"

"Word gets out fast here" Naoki informed her

"Yes...indeed it does" Naoto grumbled

"Though I suppose if you're only half-siblings, that'd be okay" Naoki shrugged as both Yu and Naoto's face glew red

"Why are you here...seems like an odd place to just be handing out?" Yu questioned as he observed the houses around them, desperate to change the subject

"This is it...where they found Sis..." Naoki stated as he stared at a telephone pole

"O-Oh..." Yu muttered

"This whole time, I could never bring myself to pass through here. I was afraid of remembering Sis, and thinking about how...how her body ended up." Naoki explained "But now, I feel like I can finally accept the truth...you know how it is in TV dramas? People cry for days on end, or their sad memories come back and torment them...It wasn't like that for me. I was the same as ever. So I thought...I thought I was a cold human being because I wasn't able to cry like the actors on TV, I thought that maybe I didn't actually like Sis..."

"That's not true" Yu told him

"You're right" Naoki smiled "Talking with you made me realize that...I was just trying not to think about Sis...It was easier for me to tell myself that I was a cold person than to think about Sis and suffer. I kept running away from the pain...I never let myself think about her...she must've wanted to live more, huh?"

"Indeed..." Naoto muttered "But the important thing is for you to keep on living for her sake"

...

"I wanted her to live more..." Naoki whimpered "I wanted her to live..."

"Just let it all out..." Yu stated as he placed his hand on Naoki's shoulder

...

"Thank you..." Naoki smiled "I finally...feel that I'm sad..."

**NOVEMBER 11/ TATSUHIME SHRINE**

"Yo. what're you doing here?" Kanji asked as he approached the shrine

"Could say the same to you" Yosuke chuckled

"I just...felt like it, y'know?" Kanji shrugged

"Yeah...yeah, I get it" Yosuke sighed as he stuffed his hands in his pockets "Came here to clear my head..."

"Something on your mind?" Kanji questioned

"Yeah..." Yosuke nodded as he took a seat on the steps of the shrine

"Y'know...it's really best to try and get this stuff off your chest" Kanji said as he sat beside him

"Yeah...alright" Yosuke sighed "I...never really thought about it before, but when I was in the Hospital the other day, I looked at Yukiko-san and realised...I think I like her"

"Seriously?" Kanji questioned

"Yeah...I mean...Ayane _did _say love who you want" Yosuke groaned as he buried his face in his hands "I dunno...I mean it's Yukiko...she'd never go for a guy like me"

"Never know unless you ask" Kanji shrugged

"It's just...I'm terrified...y'know?" Yosuke told him "Every girl who I've loved or loved me has ended up either dead or comatose...I...I'm scared to like her"

...

"That's a son of a bitch" Kanji sighed "Well...sometime's you just gotta take a risk"

"That risk could lead to Yukiko being hurt...I couldn't forgive myself for that" Yosuke informed "I can't act on this..."

"Geez..." Kanji groaned "Just ask her out, man"

"How about you ask Naoto out?" Yosuke glared

"W-What?!" Kanji spluttered "W-What makes you think I even like her?!"

"Dude, everyone can see it" Yosuke droned "Though I'd hold back a little now"

"W-What'd you mean?" Kanji asked

"Well...she _is _Yu's sister" He told him "He's probably all _My sister is off limits!_ mode now"

"What? No way..." Kanji groaned "...You think?"

"I dunno man..." Yosuke shrugged "You'll have to ask him if he's cool with it..."

"I-I ain't gonna ask him that!" Kanji snapped "'sides...I don't even know if Naoto is interested in me..."

"Well...looks like we're in the same boat" Yosuke sighed "I don't even know where to start with all this..."

...

"I ain't gonna sit here and sulk" Kanji sighed as he stood up "I'm...I need to think about stuff"

"Good luck...sometime's you just gotta take a risk" Yosuke echoed

"H-Hey, I said that!" Kanji called out

"I know, I was quoting you" Yosuke glared "Y'know what? Nevermind..."

**NOVEMBER 12/ AIYA**

"You're not eating?" Daisuke questioned

"Daisuke-kun...why did you invite me here?" Yumi asked

"What'd ya mean?" He asked

"It's always me..." Yumi muttered

...

"I...I don't like coming here alone" Daisuke told her "And...you're a nice person...I'd like to get to know you better"

"O-Oh" Yumi gulped with a blush

"I...I don't mean it like that" Daisuke muttered "I...It's just, since Kou died, I've been feeling distant...I already know all the others, so I want to get to know you"

"Oh..." Yumi noted "I see...in that case, I'll order-"

**NOVEMBER 13/ SCHOOL HALLWAY**

"You've been spending a lot of time with Naoto" Chie noted

"Yeah, well...I figure I should get to know her better now" Yu shrugged before raising an eyebrow "You're not jealous, are you?"

"What?! No!" She snapped "S-She's your sister, there's nothing to be jealous of..."

"W-Woah, did I hear that right?" A nearby student asked

"The detective Prince is your sister?"

"Really, is that true?" Another asked

"U-Uh, yeah..." Yu gulped "It's...complicated"

**CLASS 1-2**

"So hey Naoto, is it true?" A female student asked "Narukami from Year 2 is your brother?"

"H-Huh?!" Naoto questioned

"Woah, seriously?!"

"Wow, him?!"

"That's-"

**AFTER SCHOOL**

"So...apparently the word is out about our relation" Naoto sighed

"Yeah, I heard too" Yu said as he rubbed the back of his head "Sorry..."

"There's nothing to be sorry about...as I said before, I'm glad to have a brother in my life" Naoto smiled

"Yeah...I'm glad you're my sister" Yu smiled back

**NOVEMBER 14/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"You're _really _sure?" Chie asked

"Yeah..." Yu nodded "I'm fine...really"

"I've told you, you can stay at mine if you like" Chie reminded

"It's sweet of you, but it's okay" Yu smiled at her "I can go back to the Dojima house, it's fine"

"You're _really _sure?" Chie asked one more time

"I'm fine!" Yu laughed "I can manage, I come from a tough family, not just my Grandpa Raidou, The Dojima's and me are descended from a group called the Belmont's who were in Translyvania in the Middle Ages, they say it was our family's duty to battle and seal away Dracula. My Great-Great-Great-Great-Great-Great-Great-Great Grandfather...I think I missed one great there, Trevor Belmont was the first one to do so"

...

"Your family sure does love its tall tales" Chie sighed "Oh well, as long as you're okay"

"You can stay over at mine if you like" Yu told her

"N-No, that's fine" Chie gulped "I don't think my parents would let me, it's different if you stayed with me, my parents are there..."

"Okay..." Yu chuckled before placing a small kiss on her forehead as the two walked along

Passing by a boy with Red hair

"Y-You!" Yu gasped as he turned around

And found nothing

"W-Was that?!" Chie panicked

"It was..." Yu said as he looked around, spotting the mess of Red hair down an alley way "There!"

"Wait, don't go!" Chie shouted as she latched onto his sleeve "Don't you...remember?"

"Yeah..." Came a voice from behind him, causing him to turn around, revealing Sho "Don't you remember?"

"How did he get behind us?!" Chie questioned

"Damn it!" Yu shouted as charged towards him

"Don't!" Chie called out as Yu ran towards Sho, who took off

"Damn it, where did he go?!" Yu cursed as he ran out of the alley way, and found nothing

"Come on, let's get out of here!" Chie shouted "We have to get the Police!"

"R-Right!" Yu nodded as he and Chie fled and pulled out their phones

...

"Screwing with them is always fun..." Sho smiled as he stepped out of his hiding spot

"Indeed..." Came a voice as an identical looking boy emerged from the shadows, before a black ooze surrounded him and when it faded, it revealed the form of the Gas Station Attendant "Taking your form to gain their attention just like I did with the Nagase boy...it's amusing to see their reactions"

"So what now?" Sho asked

"Now, they know you are here..." The Attendant told him "And so will the Shadow Operatives know...so now...they will come"

"So that's it then?" Sho asked "Is it time"?

"Almost..." The Attendant stated as he stared up at the sky

**NOVEMBER 15**

"So...Minazuki is still there" Mitsuru sighed

_"Indeed" Katsuya confirmed over the phone "Yu-san and Chie-kun confronted him yesterday, both managed to escape before anything occured"_

"Good, they're okay" Mitsuru sighed "But...he _is_ there"

_"Yes..."_

"Then I am coming down to Inaba, I won't let this go on any longer" Mitsuru stated

_"Are you sure?" Katsuya asked_

"Yes...I will contact the others" Mitsuru nodded "I won't leave until it's all settled

**With this decision, the course of events had changed**

**And thus, time flowed on...**

**FIVE DAYS LATER/ NOVEMBER 20/ SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"So once again, they have saved the victim..." The Attendant muttered

"Well duh..." Sho scoffed before pointing at Shinya "This guy was there..."

"No more..."

"Huh?" Sho questioned

"No more..." The Attendant stated as he held out his arms and a yellow mist began to pour from his body and fill the district

"W-What are you doing?!" Shinya shrieked

"Making my power one with this world" The Attendant explained "It's time for the fog to invade this world"

...

"That fog...was your doing?" Shinya questioned

"My power...created the TV World" The Attendant said to him "Now...I will bring my power to this world too!"

"W-What are you going to do?!" Shinya cried

"This world will become one; I have found the way. The world that _he_ envisioned will finally become a reality and it will make mankind whole again" The Attendant said "I will rid this world of its infestation...and only then, will it be free"

**NOVEMBER 21/ PATH TO SCHOOL**

"This is odd..." Yu muttered "The fog is still here..."

"Hey there..." Chie greeted as the group approached him

"Hey, don't you think this is odd?" Yosuke asked

"The fog's still here..." Kanji noted

"Oh, it's you guys" Adachi greeted "Perfect timing. I just got a call from the hospital. They said that starting today, it's okay to visit Nanako-chan."

"So she's getting a little better…" Chie sighed in relief "Thank goodness!"

"Adachi-san...how's the search going?" Yu asked

"Well, I won't lie, we haven't even had a sighting of your dad" Adachi sighed "We're looking into if he had any affiliation with Mayumi Amano or Saki Konishi"

"I won't lie...the timing seems odd...if...my _father _did indeed conduct the murder of Mayumi Amano, it occured before Yu's arrival in Inaba" Naoto noted

"That's right!" Yosuke gaped "But if that's the case..."

"He did mention something about others..." Chie recalled "We know he's not acting alone"

"His use of _them_ implied there is at least one more beside Minazuki" Naoto said

"So there's three of them in on it?" Daisuke asked

"Even so...that would mean he's involved with Saki-senpai's death" Yosuke growled "That son of a bitch!"

"U-Uh, well…I'm gonna head to the hospital now." Adachi said before he began to depart "Dojima-san's recovering too, so I need to go over a few things about this case with him."

...

"Yosuke-kun" Yukiko muttered in concern

"Sorry…I'm all right." Yosuke sighed "But forget him! Let's all go visit Nanako-chan after school!"

**INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL**

"Nanako, everyone came to see you" Dojima said from his wheelchair

"Mm…" Nanako muttered, just talking seemed to pain her "Big…bro…"

"Dojima-san!" A nurse growled as she entered the room "How many times does this make it today? I understand that you're worried about your daughter, but you still need your rest too!"

"Ngh…S-Sorry." Dojima groaned

"Um…are your injuries that bad?" Yukiko asked

"Hm…well, my wounds have just closed up, and it seems I have a couple of fractures as well." Dojima informed

"I'm sorry. I'll wheel him back to his room immediately." Adachi apologized

"What're you apologizing for…?" Dojima grumbled

"It's almost time for your checkup, so make sure you're back in your room before then." The Nurse demanded

"Big...bro..." Nanako repeated

"I'm here Nanako" Yu said as he walked over to her

"I'm glad..." Nanako smiled before her eyelips fell and she settled into a gentle slumber

"She's...just a l'il girl" Labrys muttered "She don't deserve ta go through this..."

"No...no she doesn't" Yosuke muttered

**OUTSIDE NANAKO'S ROOM**

"Her condition is stable for now, but…" The Doctor explained to the group "I never though I'd say this as a doctor, but…we still can't figure out the cause of Nanako-chan's symptoms. That's why we can only administer temporary treatments to alleviate her current pains."

"But she's not in danger anymore, is she?" Dojima asked

"She's regained consciousness, but we can't let our guard down yet…" The Doctor revealed "All we can do for now is to monitor her condition closely…"

"Adachi. How's it going with Shinya?" Dojima asked

"No clue, we'll still on the lookout" Adachi sighed "So we're stuck until we find him again..."

"I see…" Dojima muttered "I should get back to work as soon as possible. Hopefully by then, Nanako will be out of the hospital…"

"Umm…I think Nanako-chan can get more peace and quiet if she stays here." Adachi told him "It's so foggy out, and there's been some weird rumors going around…seems like no one knows why there's so much fog in town."

"It's true. The number of patients complaining about fog-related health problems has increased…" The Doctor nodded "Which is quite unusual…"

"Isn't that just a rumor?" Yumi asked

"I can't say for sure that it has no effect on the human body…" The Doctor stated "It certainly could be a psychological effect. People's anxiety over the fog could cause problems. But as far as the fog's chemical makeup… Well, that's not my field, so I can only speculate. What concerns me is that transportation of our medial supplies has been delayed due to the fog…"

"Fog-related health problems…now that's just ridiculous." Dojima sighed "Anyone who says that is just blowing smoke."

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Isn't this weather stranger? How could it be lasting for so long?"

"I've never seen anything like it."

"I wonder what's causing it. It's so creepy…"

"I heard that a friend of mine's son got sick from the fog and collapsed. You know how sensitive children are to that sort of thing."

"I heard something too…they say an old man was driving through the fog and got into an accident."

"What? Did he lose control?"

"Well, he'd never been in an accident or even gotten a ticket before, so something seems off…isn't that scary?"

"I've even heard there are experts saying it's poisonous. I wonder if that's true…"

"Do you think it's, you know, because of that global warming thing? This town's changed a lot over the years. I wish the government would step in and do something about this."

"Oh, I agree completely. If we're going to pay taxes, I expect the authorities to do their jobs."

"This fog is poison! It's a fog filled with viruses! Don't inhale the fog, or you'll die!"

"He's not the first one like that I've seen lately."

"Poisonous gas, though…?"

"Oh, I'm sure it's not true…"

"…"

"Hm? Is something wrong?"

"Oh my…I-I think I'm coming down with something…"

"Y-You can't be serious… Ahaha…That's right, I needed to do some grocery shopping. Well then…"

"Business has been so slow as of late..." Rise Grandmother sighed as she stepped out of her store

**NOVEMBER 22/ CLASSROOM**

"I can't even think of studying..." Yosuke sighed as Yu sat across from him

"No...me neither" Yu muttered "I'm gonna go see Nanako and Mom in the hospital"

"Mind if I tag along?" Yosuke asked

"Sure, come on" Yu nodded

"Oh hey, Naoto" Yosuke noted the girl who was walking passed the door "We're going to the hospital to see Nanako-chan, you wanna come with?"

"I'd love to, but I must return home to examine something" Naoto told them

"Studying?" Yosuke asked

"Something like that..." Naoto muttered as she walked away

**FIVE DAYS LATER/ NOVEMBER 27**

"I'm concerned about you" Chie told him "All you've been doing is going to hospital, you barely eat, I don't even see you anymore"

...

"I'm fine" Yu told her

"No more of this _I'm fine_ shit!" Chie cursed "You're not! Don't even deny it!"

"All I can do is go there..." Yu said "I...I...Nanako, Mom, Uncle...are all I have in this world"

"Not true!" Chie shouted "There's me! And your sister Naoto! And all of your friends!"

...

"I don't want to lose them...I have to be there for them" Yu told her

"_We're _all here for them...and you" Chie told him "You've been there for us time and time again...now let us be there for you"

"I'm...I'm sorry" Yu sighed "I'm..."

"It's okay...no one blames you" Chie told him "Come on, exams are tomorrow, let's go study"

**HILL OVERLOOKING TOWN**

"This fog can't be good" Akihiko noted as he overlooked the town

"According to Katsuya, this is the first time it's leaked into the real world" Yukari stated

"That's not good...that probably means something big's about to go down" Junpei gulped

"Whatever it is, we can't let it come forth" Mitsuru stated

"Yeah, we'll take of it, just like we took care of Nyx!" Akihiko roared

...

_"Mommy, why is that man wearing a cape?"_

_"Hush, don't stare"_

**NOVEMBER 28/ PATH TO SCHOOL**

"Look at this weather, man." Yosuke sighed "What's up with this…? It's really weird. Have you ever heard of anything like this before? Oh, yeah, and finals start today. But that's seriously not the point now. What's going to happen?"

"I'm worried, too." Yu noted

"I thought that stuff about the fog being harmful to people was just a rumor, but people are getting sick. And even besides that, there have been a lot of weird rumors spread around, too.

Damn…I don't like how any of this feels."

**FIVE DAYS LATER/ DECEMBER 3/ JUNES FOODCOURT**

"Here, there's a story about the fog in here" Chie said as the group examined a newspaper "_Some specialists are raising concerns that this fog may consist harmful substances…more and more citizens are calling for an investigation into the cause of the fog and the facts about it. "Thought the government has begun its preliminary investigation, many feel that the causes will be hard to pinpoint…_Huh…is this fog really dangerous?"

"You hardly ever see people walkin' around town anymore…" Kanji noted "Or here, either."

"Everyone's too scared of the fog now to go outdoors much." Rise stated

"It does seem a lot like the fog on the other side…" Teddie added "But beyond that, I'm clueless."

"It mentions that a suspect has been identified, but his name isn't given here" Naoto read "It mentions the arrest for trying to kidnap Nanako-chan last month, it probably won't be long before they give his name out"

"But all that's left is for the police to build a case for Shinya, right?" Yosuke asked

"Can they prove anything?" Yu sighed

"I'm sure your uncle can…" Yosuke told him

"But…the stuff he was saying was so obviously nuts." Rise told "If he says anything about the TV world, he might be considered mentally unstable…"

"Also, I heard before that if the police don't have enough hard evidence, it's difficult to build a case." Yukiko added in

"Yes…there are many such cases and culprits. It's the eternal conundrum for crime investigators…" Naoto groaned

"So even if they're caught…the law can't do shit?" Kanji questioned

"It's a possibility." She admitted

"Hell's up with that!?" Kanji cried "We all know he did it…you can't just let a maniac who thinks he's saving people by killing them run wild on the streets!"

"They better not dismiss something this serious because of some mental issues…" Yosuke growled "Saki-senpai…no… not just her, or that announcer…even King Moron and Ayane is his fault. If it weren't for what he did, nobody would've tried a copycat killing. It's his fault Nanako-chan's in the hospital right now, too…"

...

"What's the matter?" Chie questioned as Yu made a face

"I promised Nanako...when Winter came around, we would buy a new Kotatsu" Yu stated

"A kotatsu…?" Kanji echoed

"Oh, then why don't we go check them out right now?" Chie suggested "I know Nanako-chan would be psyched if she came home and found a new kotatsu!"

"Dude, why didn't you tell me sooner? The winter season's coming up, and we just got a bunch of 'em in stock!" Yosuke smiled "Alright, off to the housewares section! For Nanako-chan!"

* * *

"If we're getting a Kotatsu, we should also get some oranges to complete the set" Chie suggested as they examined the stock

"It's a cliché because it's true, dammit." Kanji nodded

"The best complement to a kotatsu would be a heated rug." Naoto added

"Dude, that much juice would kill the breaker the moment you tried to microwave something." Yosuke groaned "Oh yeah, you've never used a kotatsu before, huh Ted? It's nice and toasty."

...

"Can I still stay here…?" Teddie asked out of the blue "You kept your promise to me…so I should be going back…but I don't want to go until Nana-chan gets better."

"Of course you can stay. How many times do we have to say this before it gets through to you?" Yosuke groaned

"Nanako-chan would be sad if you weren't there when she wakes up." Chie smiled

"B-But…I couldn't save Nana-chan…" Teddie pouted

"Don't be silly. We saved her together." Rise smiled

"Teddie, you shouldn't talk that way when Nanako-chan is still fighting." Yukiko stated

"You guys…" Teddie teared up

"You're staying right here, with us" Yu smiled

"Sensei…I'm so touched!" Teddie sobbed "I'll stay by your side until Nanako-chan comes home, Sensei!"

"Oh, that's right…there's no one but you at your place." Yosuke recalled

"Hey, why don't we pick out a Christmas present for Nanako-chan while we're at it?" Chie suggested "Oh, that's a great idea! I'm sure she'll be out of the hospital by then."

"Alright, but none of this _charge it to Yosuke_ stuff this time. Seriously." Yosuke groaned "We're clear on this, right?"

"Aw come on, why would we do something like that?" Chie asked

"Dude, the clothes you got for this guy? I almost pissed my pants when I saw the receipt!" Yosuke snapped "How many days you think I had to work to pay that off!?"

"Well, I can't help it if Junes overcharges for things." Chie shrugged

"Urgh…!" Yosuke growled before a glimmer appeared in her eye "Well, I guess you gotta expect that…It's not like Chie-san's ever had the occasion to help a guy shop before."

"Wha-!? What did you just say!?" Chie snapped

"C'mon, baby. Don't fight over me…" Teddie smiled

"Stay outta this!" Chie and Yosuke shouted in unison

"Snrk… Heeheeheehee…" Yukiko giggled

"Let's leave them be and think of a present for Nanako-chan on our own." Rise sighed

"But what would a girl her age want…?" Yumi asked

"What do you think Nanako-chan would appreciate most?" Naoto asked Yu

"A doll, I guess..." Yu shrugged

"Maybe a Jack Frost doll, I hear those are pretty popular with the kids" Daisuke noted

"Yeah, that white, round shape's the best. A plush doll's the way to go!" Kanji nodded

"All right, as soon as Nanako-chan's out of the hospital, we'll have a party at your place!" Yosuke nodded

"Yesss! And we'll bake the cake!" Chie cheered

"Of course!" Rise nodded

"Let's make it a cake to remember." Yukiko smiled

"Oh no you're not! Are you trying to send Nanako-chan back to the hospital!?" Yosuke cried

_**PIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPIPI**_

"Adachi-san?" Yu questioned as he answered

_"Hello? This is Adachi. Um, I want you to stay calm and listen to me, okay? Nanako-chan's condition suddenly got worse…the doctor wants you to come to the hospital immediately…"_

**INABA MUNICIPLE HOSPITAL/ NANAKO'S ROOM**

_"Doctor, this fog is poisonous, isn't it? Isn't it filled with viruses? They said so on TV! Isn't there a vaccine or something for it!?"_

_"Calm down, please. That's just a rumor…"_

_"Don't tell me to calm down! You're lying! We know you have medicine for this! Are you just going to stand there and watch us die!?"_

_"Why would we do something like that!?"_

"What a commotion…" Chie muttered

"What the hell's that supposed to mean!? Can't you see how much pain she's in!?" Dojima yelled at the doctor

"All we can do right now is monitor her condition closely. Dojima-san, you need to return to your-"

"I don't give a damn about myself! Do something about Nanako-Nngh…"

"Ryotaro!" Yosuke yelped

"Just save her…for god's sake, please save Nanako…" Dojima begged

"We'll do our best." The Doctor stated "I must ask you all to step outside for the time being."

"Nanako…" Dojima muttered as he was escorted outside

* * *

"Hey, can't you do something?!" Yosuke snapped at Teddie "This all has to do with the world you came from! Can't you figure something out!?"

"I'm thinking… I'm thinking, but…" Teddie muttered

"Dammit! Why does this have to happen to a little girl like her…!?" Kanji roared

"Calm down." Was Daisuke's statment

"How'm I supposed to stay calm at a time like this!?" Kanji snapped back "Can't believe this is happening…"

"Nanako-chan's gonna be okay… right?" Chie muttered

"You guys still here?" Adachi questioned as he approached the group

"How is Ryotaro doing?" Motoko asked

"His wound's opened up again. They're treating it over in his room now." Adachi told her

"Any luck finding my dad?" Yu asked

"Um...no..." Adachi sighed "And even if we did find him-"

"Is Nanako-chan's family here?!" A Nurse cried as she ran out of the room "Hurry inside! Please talk to her!"

"What the hell…? What's going on!?" Yosuke shouted

"Oh no..." Yu gulped as he dashed into the room

"No…Nanako-chan…" Yukiko muttered as she and the rest entered the room

"Da...ddy..." A weak Nanako mumbled

"He'll be here soon." Yu said as he took her hand

"Big bro...is...Big Sis here too?" Nanako asked

"Yes...I'm here..." Naoto said as she walked over and took her other hand

"Nanako-chan… Nanako-chan. Can you hear us? Do you understand what we're saying?" The Doctor asked "Your big brother and your big sister are here with you. Just hang in there...damn it, where's Dojima-san!?"

"We're calling for him right now!" The nurse said

"Big bro..."

"I'm here..." Yu said as he tighted his grip on her hand

"I'm...scared..."

"Don't be...you're not going anywhere" Motoko told her

"Auntie...Da...ddy...Big Sis...Big...bro"

"Don't go..." Yu pleaded "Don't..."

...

"Nanako!" Dojima shouted as he stormed into the room "N-Nanako...?"

...

"I'm...sorry, sir" The Doctor said to him

"No!" Chie called out

"Nanako-chan..." Yukiko whimpered

"Damn it...DAMN IT!" Yosuke roared

"Nana-chan..." Teddie mumbled

"Ahh.." Yu squeaked "Aahhhhh...AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH**HHHHHHHHHHHH!**"

...

...

_"W-Where am I...?" Nanako questioned as she stood before a black void_

_"Do no fear young one..."_

_"Huh?" Nanako questioned "Who's there?"_

_"It is the darkness within thou that has a grip upon your lifeforce" The voice stated "I will release it from your heart..."_

_"Huh?" Nanako echoed_

_"Do not fear..." The Voice said once more as a blue butterfly flew in front of her face "You will live...I will not let your life end this way"_

...

...

"H-Huh?!" The Doctor cried "Her heart-rate monitor! It restarted!"

"What?!" Yu gasped

"Huh…? Wh-What did you just say!?" Rise cried

"Nanako-chan's…alive!?" Yukiko asked

"A-Are you serious!?" Yosuke gaped

"It's very rare to be resuscitated after one's heart and lungs fail, but it does happen." The Doctor explained "But until I know why she collapsed in the first place, I can't say for sure how well she'll recover from here on…still, Nanako-chan's a fighter, and she's trying desperately to stay alive."

"She...she's okay" Labrys said with a tearful smiled

"S-So this isn't a joke…?" Daisuke gulped

"You're actually telling the truth…!?" Yumi cried

"Nanako-chan…!" Yukiko smiled happily

"Oh my God… I… I…!" Chie gasped

"Haha…this is amazing" Kanji smiled with a tearful laugh

"Miracles do happen…I'm so glad…" Naoto smiled

"I-I didn't know what I was gonna do…" Rise sniffed as she and Yukiko broke out into a sob

"C'mon…stop crying, you two…" Chie whimpered as she too broke into a sob

"You all should go home for the night." The Doctor said

"H-Hey Ted, she's alive!" Yosuke said to the agape bear who had yet to move

...

"U-Unbelievable!" Teddie gasped "She...she was dead! She...N-N-Nana-chan!"

**SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Oh...it's snowing" Yukiko noted as the group walked home

"Hey, you're right…wow, it's been a while since I last saw real snow." Rise noted "It doesn't look that pretty, though, because of this fog…"

"I guess this makes it the first snow of the year." Chie said

"Brrr, it's freezing! Let's go home." Yumi shivered

"Let's meet up at the special headquarters tomorrow." Yosuke informed the group

"'Night..." Was the departing words as the group departed, save for Yu and Chie

...

"Will...you be okay?" Naoto asked her half-brother

"He...hehehe"

"Huh?" Chie questioned

"She's okay..." Yu smiled as tears ran down his face "She's...okay"

Chie could only smiled and hug him back

**POLICE STATION**

"Huh? Shirogane-san, what are you doing here?" A detective asked as he found her in the archives

"Looking for..." Naoto muttered "Found it..."

"Is it something I can help with?" He asked

"No..." Naoto muttered as she examined the file "You should go"

...

"O-Okay..." The Attendant gulped

...

"This..." Naoto gasped as she examined the file "This is..."

**DECEMBER 4/ AIYA**

"Man, I'm pooped..." Chie sighed "After all that's happened in the last few days"

"All we can do is pray for Nanako-chan..." Kanji sighed

"So what now?" Yosuke asked

"Well…one steak bowl please!"

"That's not what I meant!" Yosuke snapped before sighing "But then again, I guess we might as well take a break…I'll have a crab and egg fried rice."

"I'll have… roast pork ramen with extra noodles." Kanji ordered

"Hey, we should see what Yu wants..." Daisuke said

"Yeah, hang on, I'll ask him" Yosuke said as he stepped out to join Yu outside "Brr, it's freezing!"

"Oh, hey" Yu greeted

"You okay out here?" Yosuke asked

"Yeah..." Yu nodded with a genuine smile "Nanako is safe for now..."

"Well...come on in, we're ordering food" Yosuke said to him

"Yeah, sure" Yu nodded as he followed him in "I only came out here to clear my head"

"Hey!" Kanji greeted Yu

"So...what're you having?" Chie asked as Yu sat beside her

"I dunno...how about you help me decide" Yu smiled as he slung his arm over her

"Oh brother..." Yosuke

BANG

"W-Woah!" Yosuke gasped as the doors flung open and there stood; "Naoto?"

"There you are!" Kanji cried "Geez, we've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Naoto-kun, what is that?" Yukiko questioned the file she was holding

And all were stunned by Naoto's answer

"I...I know who the killer is!"

* * *

"N-No way..." Yosuke muttered as they walked up the Shopping district

"That...can't be right, you have to check again!" Yu told her

"It's here..." Naoto muttered as they arrived before thier destination

"Naoto-kun...are you sure about this?" Chie asked

"Only one way to be sure..." Kanji muttered as the group stepped through the doors

"Sorry, we're just closin-oh, it's you guys..." The man noted

...

"Hello...Naoki" Yu said

"Huh...you okay?" Naoki asked "You all seem...off"

"Naoki Konishi..." Naoto said sternly "Where were you when Mayumi Yamano was murdered?"

"H-Huh?" Naoki questioned

"And Saki-Senpai..." Yosuke added

"W-What's with these questions?!" Naoki asked

"And the letters...was that you too?" Yu questioned

"Man, what the hell are you talking about!?" Naoki cried "What is all this?!"

"'Cause we think it might'a been you." Kanji glared

"What!? Th-That's ridiculous!" Naoki spluttered "I'm not the one threatning you!"

...

"At which point did I say they were _warning _letters?" Yu glared

"Ah...I-I..." Naoki gasped

"There's something interesting about you, Naoki Konishi" Naoto said "Like me...you were born out of an affair. Your birth mother abandoned you with your father...and two years ago, she turned up dead..."

"S-So what!" Naoki snapped

"She died on April 6, 2009...a missing persons report was filed for you on April _7_, 2009, you showed up later that day and stated you had caught the wrong train the previous day and didn't have the money for return fare...I don't think that's true, I think you hunted down your birth mother for abandoning you and murdered her!"

"Enough of this!" Naoki shouted "Get out of here! I don't wanna here any more of this!"

"_That's _why you killed Ms. Yamano...you being born out of an affair gave you an immense hatred for infidelity, her affair was highly publicized...you saw no choice but to kill her..." Naoto said

"I...I..."

"Also, did you not say that the word was out that Yu Narukami was my half-brother? Yet word only arose a few weeks later at school and the reaction was surprise all throughout...so how could you have known about our relation?" Naoto recalled "And further more...you stated that you believed relationship between half-siblings was okay...but Saki, didn't did she?"

"YOU SHUT UP!" Naoki roared

"She rejected you...and you couldn't take that" Naoto said coldly "So in a fit of rage...you killed her, but before that...well, you know what you did"

"Shut up!" Naoki shouted once more "The world knows it was Shinya Narukami wh-..."

...

"That name...has not been released to the pubic" Naoto stated

"No way..." Yosuke cursed "It...it was you?!"

"Naoki Konishi" Naoto said coldly "You are the one who killed Mayumi Yamano and Saki Konishi and the one who has been throwing people into the TV world along with your accomplices Sho Minazuki and Shinya Narukami...don't try to deny it"

...

"I won't" Naoki stated, surprising the group "What? You want me to admit it?...Fine...you're right...I killed The Yamano lady and Saki"


	24. All the Madmen

**ALL THE MADMEN**

"S-Son of a bitch!" Yosuke cursed "How...how could you kill your own sister?!"

"W-Why?!" Naoki laughed "That...Bitch?! I'll tell you how, I-"

"Look out!" Yu cried as Naoki grabbed a bottle of alcohol off the shelf and lobbed it at them

"Get back here!" Kanji yelled as Naoki dashed into the backroom, the group following in pursuit

And found nothing

"What the…!?" Yosuke cried

"Dammit…where the hell'd he go?" Kanji cursed

"He ran in here, so where is he?!" Daisuke growled

"He ran in here, there's no exit in here, so..." Yukiko muttered as her eyes wandered to a CRT TV on table

"Yeah, I think so." Chie nodded "If he's the killer, he can go through, right?"

"You mean he went in through here?" Rise questioned

"We searched every inch in the direction he ran off…there's nowhere to hide. I don't think we could'a missed him." Yosuke stated

"He was cornered…It's highly probable that he escaped there." Naoto stated "If he does indeed turn up on the other side, hat should prove beyond a doubt that he is the true culprit."

"Damn, so I guess we were right…" Kanji sighed "What do we do now?"

"What we've always done..." Yu told him "Tomorrow, we go in, find him, and end this..."

* * *

"After all this time...a high school student?" Katsuya questioned

"Yes..." Adachi sighed "Naoto-kun gave us all the info she could, it was definitely him"

"Then it's settled" Katsuya nodded "Now we know what to do, Adachi-san, will you assist?"

"Of course" Adachi nodded "No more people will suffer because of him..."

* * *

"I sense an oncoming danger..." Igor muttered

"Then is it time, my master?" Theodore asked

"I believe so" Igor nodded

"I see..." Margaret hummed "Then I will make the appropriate contact"

"No need..." Igor muttered as a whooshing sound began to grace their ears "She is already here..."

"IS IT A BIRD?! IS IT A PLANE?!" A voice cried

"Is that-" Theo muttered as a large object fell from the sky

"NO! IT'S ELIZABETH!"

"AH!" Theo cried as his older sister crashed into him

"Hello Sister..." Margaret sighed

**GAS STATION**

"DAMN IT! DAMN IT ALL!"

"Woah!" Sho yelped as the Attendant smashed his hand into the wall

"SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE DIED!" The Attendant roared "THE LITTLE BRAT SHOULD BE DISCOMPOSING AS WE SPEAK!...He..._he _interfered!"

"So what now?" Sho sighed "You've always had a back-up plan..."

...

"Naoki has been compromised...now...we have no choice!" The Attendant snapped "NOW is the time, the reunion begins now!"

**DECEMBER 5/ TV WORLD**

"Woah, look how dense this fog is..." Chie muttered as the TV Studio area will filled with even more fog than usual "It's even worse than before..."

"Man...it's like I'm not even wearing the glasses..." Daisuke groaned

"What the…? There's this malicious aura everywhere…It feels completely different from the last time I was here…" Rise muttered before summoning Kanzeon "I think we'd better hurry. Give me a sec to try finding Naoki."

"Does this mean both this world and ours are getting messed up?" Yosuke questioned

"It can't be normal…" Yukiko muttered "And I heard more people are falling ill because of the fog. I wonder what's going to happen."

"I sense him!" Rise cried "Naoki's definitely in here!"

"Are you serious!? Which way!?" Yosuke asked

"Hold on…" Rise muttered as she continued to search

"So he did come to this side…" Naoto muttered "Well, that settles it. There's virtually no doubt remaining that he's the true culprit."

"But even afta 'im...there's still Minazuki and Yu-kun's dad..." Labrys said

"There's no need to act alone..." Katsuya's voice rang through the fog as he approached the group, along with Adachi and-

"Mitsuru-san!" Labrys noted as the Shadow Operatives came into view

"Hello sister" Aigis greeted

"What're all you doing here?" Yosuke question

"We know that this Naoki Konishi is responsible for all this, that he is working with Sho Minazuki" Mitsuru stated "And...we know that your father is also involved"

As soon as those words left her mouth, deep shame ran through Yu and Naoto

"It doesn't matter...all we have to do now is stop them" Akihiko told them

"We're all here now" Yukari told them "With all of us...we can finally end all this"

"If this world really is what I think it is..." Teddie muttered "Then…maybe we'll find out where I came from, too."

"Teddie?" Yumi questioned

...

"I can't find him..." Rise sighed "I know he's in here, but I can't locate him..."

"My senses are being blocked too..." Fuuka noted

"My nose is useless..." Teddie whined "I can't do anything...I don't even have a Persona..."

"Hey, don't whine!" Chie told him "You've helped us out more time than I can count throughout this entire year"

"R-Really?" Teddie whimpered

"Hell yeah, man!" Kanji told him

"You're our friend, you've always helped us" Yu nodded

"S-Sensei!" Teddie sobbed

"Rise, you're straining yourself" Naoto noted "It'd be best if you'd stop"

"I'm all right..." Rise groaned as she dismissed Kanzeon "I just got a little dizzy..."

"This fog is so dense..." Fuuka muttered

"Why don't we call it a day? It won't do us any good if you collapse." Chie said to the two

"I agree. If Rise-san became fatigued, even if we found Konishi, our capacity in battle would be reduced." Naoto nodded "Moreover, it's almost nighttime…we should return to our world for the present."

**JUNES FOOD COURT**

"Damn it...we came so far and we ran straight into a dead end!" Kanji cursed

"I know he's in there, too…what's wrong with me…? My powers are completely useless…!" Rise growled

"Don't blame yourself" Mitsuru told her "We'll find this Konishi boy"

"We'll find him" Akihiko nodded "We're not gonna let a maniac with Persona ruin any more lives..."

"Yeah...if Konishi is in there, then chances are he has a Persona" Naoto nodded

"That would make sense..." Yu sighed "Damn it all..."

"We can't get frustrated" Yosuke told him "We need to keep our cool...and tomorrow, we hunt the bastard down"

"Those two statements totally contradicted each other" Chie grumbled

_BARK_

"What's wrong Koro-chan?" Yukari asked

"Why is he barking at Teddie?" Kanji questioned

"Well, Teddie _is _unusual..." Yosuke muttered "But the rest of us are pretty much a group of misfits, right?"

"I beg your pardon?" Naoto raised an eyebrow "Who are you calling a misfit?"

"Isn't that just you, Senpai?" Rise asked him

"Hey! That's not something a detective would say… Or an idol, either!" Yosuke grumbled

"The main thing is, it's hard to get pumped about this without someone nice 'n fuzzy around." Kanji said

"Yeah, what Kanji said." Rise nodded

"O-Okay…" Teddie nodded "Thanks, guys…"

"Alright, now that the band's back together, let's take it from the top, starting tomorrow!" Yosuke nodded

"It's been a while, but I'll do my best to look for him too! Leave it to Fuzzy!" Teddie cheered

* * *

"There's an ending...so close in sight" Yu muttered "After we take care of Naoki..."

"There's still Minazuki and your dad..." Chie reminded him

"I know, but..." Yu sighed

"I know what you mean...if we take down Naoki, then this is almost over" Chie nodded "With Nanako-chan and your family out of the woods, it's almost a relief"

"Yeah..." Yu sighed "Chie..."

"Yeah?"

"After tomorrow..." Yu said as he turned to her "Let's go somewhere...just the two of us"

"Huh?" Chie blushed "A trip...?"

"I love you..." Yu told her as he took her hands into his own "I want to be with you...forever"

"Y-Yu..." Chie gulped "Geez...you always make me blush"

"Heh..." Yu chuckled

...

"So where will we go?" Chie asked

"How about we head to Tokyo?" Yu suggested "Maybe even go back to my old house for a few days"

"Wow, so maybe I could see your old room?" Chie chuckled "I wonder if it's a mess"

"Oh, you'd love it" Yu chuckled

* * *

"So if we take out Naoki tomorrow...we'll be one step closer to ending this, once and for all" Yosuke said "He...he killed Saki, I won't forgive him"

"He's been the root of some many people's suffering..." Yukiko stated "We can't let him continue any longer..."

"After we take care of him, maybe then Saki can finally rest in peace..." Yosuke muttered "Maybe...I can move on"

"Yosuke-kun..."

...

"H-Hey, Yukiko-san?"

"Yeah?"

"Hey...how about tomorrow, after we take care of Naoki" Yosuke gulped "I...we...go somewhere?"

"Y-You mean...a date?" Yukiko questioned

"W-Well...yeah" Yosuke admitted with an embarrassed scratch of his head

"O-Oh..." Yukiko blushed

"I...I mean...damn it" Yosuke sighed "Lemme just ask flat out...would you ever go for a guy like me?"

"A-Ah!" Yukiko gasped, stunned by his question "W-Well...w-would you ever go for someone like me?"

"Of course I would...you're the prettiest girl in school..." Yosuke told her, causing her to blush even more "A-And...I'll be honest, if we weren't part of the Investigation team, you probably wouldn't even know my name"

"Of course I would..." She told him "I've always known you...

"But...y'know, it's..._me_" Yosuke sighed "I'm just some kid who transferred here from the city last year, my family's putting the shopping district out of business, this whole town hates my guts, but you're practically a Princess here, your family has a long history in this town. You're beloved by pretty much every guy here...you'd never throw that all way for a guy like me..."

...

"Yosuke-kun...a-are...are you in love with me?"

"I dunno, maybe" Yosuke laughed "Hell I don't even know...my mind would always go to Saki, but now I end up thinking of you...but...every girl I've loved or who loved me has either ended up in hospital or dead...I'm...I'm afraid to like you"

...

"You don't have to be afraid for me" Yukiko told him "I can handle myself, I'm not like those two, I have a Persona to defend myself. Besides, we know now that Naoki is the reason for Saki and Ayane-chan, when we defeat him...you don't have to be afraid anymore"

"Yuk-Ah!" Yosuke yelped as the girl wrapped him in a hug

"I feel sorry for you" Yukiko told him "Losing Saki and Ayane-chan...I...I..."

"Yukiko-san..." Yosuke muttered

"How about...we go to Okina City tomorrow?" Yukiko smiled as she pulled away from him "Just the two of us..."

...

"Y-Yeah" Yosuke grinned "I mean...yeah, sure, if you want.."

"Heh...hehehehehe!" Yukiko laughed

"W-What're you laughing for?!" Yosuke cried

* * *

"Hey..." Kanji said out of the blue

"Yes?" Nanako questioned

"Listen...how about...lunch?" Kanji asked

"Lunch? It's almost midnight" Naoto said as she checked her watch

"N-No, I mean tomorrow" Kanji gulped

"O-Oh, okay" Naoto nodded

"R-Really?!" Kanji yelped

"Yes, where are we going?" Naoto asked "Somewhere big enough to house our large group I assume?"

"H-Huh? No, that's not what I meant!" Kanji groaned "I mean...us two, just us, no one else!"

"O-Oh!" Naoto blushed "W-Well...I see no reason why not..."

"S-Seriously?!" Kanji yelled "I mean...cool...cool"

"Why are you acting this way? This is a normal thing is it not?" Naoto questioned "Friends inviting friends..."

"N-No! That ain't it!" Kanji groaned "I-I wanna...I wanna...look, you're...attractive!"

"O-O-Oh! Oh my..." Naoto gasped as her cheeks turned red "I-I see..."

"It's...It's just...you're not..._unattractive_" Kanji blushed as his eyes turned away "Look, just forget it!"

"N-No, it's fine!" Naoto told him "I-If anything, I'm glad you asked...I...I'd like to get to know you better"

"R-R-R-R-Really?!" Kanji yelped "I-I-I mean...cool...neat"

"_Neat_?" Naoto questioned

"S-Shaddup" Kanji blushed

* * *

"This feeling..." Akihiko muttered "It feels like...we're about to fight Nyx all over again"

"Yeah..." Junpei nodded "There's this...ominous presence in the air"

"It believe the term is _Deja Vu_" Aigis stated "The act of-"

"We know what it means..." Katsuya sighed

"This will not end with Naoki Konishi's defeat however..." Mitsuru stated "Sho Minazuki and Shinya Narukami must also be dealt with..."

"That poor kid must be going through a lot..." Yukari muttered, referring to Yu

"Finding out his dad's part of this? Yeah..." Akihiko sighed

"We're going to help Narukami-san, right?" Fuuka asked

"Of course" Mitsuru nodded

_BARK_

"Looks like Koromaru is eager to help too" Ken chuckled

**GAS STATION**

"It's finally time..." The Attendant declared as he, Sho and Shinya stood in front of a large TV

"Alright...time to end this..." Sho stated, shifting to Minazuki personality

"Please..." Shinya begged

"Enter the TV..." The Attendant commanded

...

"Y-Yes..." Shinya gulped as he pulled himself in

"Let's end this..." Sho said as he followed him in

...

"What is a man...but a miserable little pile of secrets?" The Attendant hummed to himself "Humanity's greed will lead to it's downfall, it consists of nothing more than a cesspit of hatred and lies! Now then...come Yu Narukami, fight for them...and die for their sins!"

**DECEMBER 6/ TV WORLD**

"I'll give it a try, but..." Teddie sighed "But If Rise-chan and Fu-chan couldn't find him, I really doubt someone with a dried-up nose like me will be much help…hmm…mmmmmm…I do smell Naoki-baby in here, but the fog is completely covering up his scent…"

"Teddie… You can't do it either?" Rise asked

"Wh-When you look at me with those eyes… I get this feeling…I've gotta sniff him out no matter what…!" Teddie cried as he began to concentrate as a golden aura surrounded him "This is my time to shine! Mm…hrmmm…ooh, I'm getting something! RAWWWWRR!"

"Is this...normal?" Akihiko asked

"Teddie?" Yukiko questioned

"Energy levels...increasing..." Aigis noted as she observed the bear

"Huh…? I sense it from…thisaway." Teddie pointed

"Is it Naoki?" Kanji asked

"Umm…how do I put it… It's kinda hazy, but at the same time, it feels like I've got a whopper on the line…" Teddie said

"That...made no sense" Junpei sighed

"Veeery suspicious…this definitely smells." Teddie hummed "But that's weird…If I remember right, that's where Sensei, Yosuke, and Chie-chan came from when I met them for the first time…"

"When we first…? Where was that?" Yosuke questioned before recalling; "Ohhhh…you mean that creepy-ass room where all the faces on the posters were cut out?"

"Yep…there's someone there!" Teddie nodded

"Teddie! You really are amazing!" Rise cheered

"I-It was just dumb luck…it's because that's where I first sensed Sensei and the others…" Teddie laughed with a blush "That's why it kinda smelled over there…"

"Ahh, I see." Chie nodded "Wait…did you say it smelled? Wasn't that where Yosuke had to go to the bathroom and..."

"Ewww!" Rise gurgled

"It happens to all of us man" Akihiko sighed "Sometimes there's just no bathroom ar-"

"I did _not _piss my pants!" Yosuke snapped "What the hell Chie?! You're making it sound way worse than it actually was!"

"Uhhh, well, it happened so long ago… My memory's kinda fuzzy, you know…" Chie shrugged

"Oookaaay guys, enough fuzziness! Follow me, the master of fuzzy logic!…Heehee." Teddie chuckled

"Does he...always do that?" Yukari asked

"Yep" Daisuke nodded

"That's annoying" Akihiko stated

"Yep" Daisuke nodded again

**EERIE ROOM**

_"That...cheating bitch..."_

_"Affair having slut..."_

"That voice..." Naoto muttered as they approached the room

"Naoki..." Yosuke growled as the the group poured into the room filled with the wrecked posters of Mayumi Yamano and with the boy facing a wall

"Who's there!?" Naoki shouted before turning around and then smiling at the group "Oh, it's you guys...you're really persistent, you know that?"

"A lot of people are dead because of you..." Yu flatly stated "We intend to make you pay for it"

"You're getting on my nerves..." Naoki growled

"So...admit right here and now...you killer Ms. Yamano" Katsuya glared

"Yeah, what of it?" Naoki spat "That...cheating bitch. What else was I supposed to do? I snuck in, grabbed the phone and called her out, saying I wanted to ask something. And then she started getting hysterical on me..."

_"W-Who're you? Y-You're just a kid"_

_"Is what they said on the news true? Did you really have an affair?"_

_"Why do I have to explain myself to you…?"_

_"I see… So you don't deny it...fucking worthless bitch…"_

_"What's wrong with you…? D-Don't make me call for help!"_

_"Ugh, shut up, shut up, shut up! I think you need to see what it's like to fear for your life… It'll get your head straight!"_

_"W-What are you going to do?! N-NO! STO-AHHHHHH!"_

_..._

_"Sh-She fell in...hahaha...wow...so people can go completely inside"_

"Good thing for me that there was no one there in the middle of the night" Naoki chuckled

"That…happened in our lobby…?" Yukiko gasped

"I learned about the Midnight Channel through some rumor...and then he came to me" Naoki stated

"Who?" Yu asked

"Oh you know, you've met him" Naoki glared

"What are you talking about?" Yu questioned

"Anyway...it was pure coincidence that I touched the screen and discovered my power." Naoki changed the subject "I burst out laughing when I found out. I knew right away that this was going to be interesting!"

"So you tested it out on Mayumi Yamano." Chie glared

"Nah, it was nothing like that. I'm a very sincere fellow." Naoki laughed "I was just trying to punish the stupid bitch a little for being a betraying slut. Yeah, putting them inside the TV was never the plan…"

"So what about Saki?!" Yosuke demanded

"Her...she died for a different reason" Naoki said

_"Naoki! No! Y-You're my brother!"_

_"No! We don't have the same blood! We only share a dad! It's okay!"_

_"No! It's disgusting! Stop this talk right now!"_

_..._

_"FUCKING BITCH!_

_"A-Ahhh! Naoki, get off me!"_

_"I-Is that how it is huh?! You'll fucking flaunt off to the Hanamura shit-stain but not for me, huh? Well if that's how it is...you slut! Fine! One way or another, you're spreading those legs..."_

_"N-Naoki! No! Stop! P-Please don't! A-Ahhhhhhh!"_

"After I was done with her...I saw no use to keep her around" Naoki shrugged "So I threw her in the TV..."

"You...sick...vile, piece of dog shit!" Yosuke roared "How dare you do that to her!"

"What's wrong Hanamura?" Naoki chuckled "Upset that I got into her pants before you did?"

"Bastard!" Yosuke screamed

"C'mon, gimme a break." Naoki sighed "I didn't know it was dangerous inside the TV. It's not like I was trying to kill them."

"Bullshit! You knew from Mayumi Amano that if you threw Saki in, she would die!" Yosuke shouted

"Oh well..." Naoki shrugged "Besides, if Namatame had been the pawn like they wanted. She wouldn't have died"

"Namatame? Taro Namatame?" Naoto questioned "What does he have to do with this?"

"The head honcho wanted to use Namatame as the pawn, to kidnap all of you..." Naoki stated "But poor little Taro couldn't take the pressure...so he killed himself. Then _he_ came to me..."

"Who's _he_?" Mitsuru questioned "Minazuki?"

"Heh, Sho wishes he was the head honcho" Naoki spat "He came to me...and told me that he placed his own power within me...and that together, we would kill all of these...sluts...in the world"

...

"So why me?" Yukiko asked "Why Kanji-kun? Why Rise-chan?"

"Yukiko Amagi...object of everyone's affection, every boy with eyes in their head is mentally undressing you, day after day..." Naoki glared "_Slut_...

Kou Ichijo, abandoned...just like me...probably the product of a slut...

Daisuke Nagase...thinks he's beyond the needs of a relationship...entitled man-whole

Kanji Tatsumi...those _impure_ thoughts in his head...man-whore

Rise Kujikawa...an Idol...whoring herself out for the nation

Labrys...well, that one wasn't me...Tohru Adachi, pathetic stooge, incompetent...divorced parents...sluts...Yumi Ozawa, holds love in such a high regard...but she confessed her love to man who doesn't love her back...just like a slut

And you...the pint-size detective...you're lucky your mother is already dead, otherwise I would have killed her myself"

"How...dare you!" Naoto growled

"Son of a bitch..." Kanji spat

"So that's it then?" Yu glared "Everyone who's not a celibate, straight, unloving slab is worthless to you?!"

...

"So how did you do it?" Adachi asked

"I had his help..." Naoki stated "He went in, shape-shifted into the image of our loved ones...and then I snuck up behind you, threw a bag over your head and then I dragged you into the back of a Van with a TV in it, which _he _stole, it got a lot easier when Shinya Narukami came into the picture, it was easier to drag you into the TV"

"W-What?" Kanji questioned

"_He _went in and shape-shifted his form to match your family members" Naoki glared

"N-No, that ain't right, I was talkin' to Ma before I went missin'!" Kanji claimed

"Are you sure...how did you know that wasn't something posing as her?" Naoki asked

"N-Now that you mention it...the last thing I remember before being kidnapped was talking to Grandma in the storeroom..." Rise recalled "But I found it odd since I thought she was outside..."

"See?" Naoki laughed "You were trouble Kujikawa, there was a detective stationed outside your store so we had to drag out out the back door and park the truck with the TV in it on the backroad"

"So that's how you did it..." Katsuya said as he pushed up his glasses

"Grrrrr, what a jerkwad…!" Teddie growled

"I do admit, though. I never though you guys would manage to track me down." Naoki hummed "I like that, Games like this gotta have surprises or they get boring fast."

"This is all a game to you?!" Akihiko snapped

"Well...it was more clean-up" Naoki shrugged "But that G1 Grand Prix was Sho's idea of a laugh...we kidnapped Adachi and Ozawa and threw them in, and then we figured you might need some more motivation, so we also got Amagi, Ichijo and Nagase in too, kidnapped the same way we did last time..."

"Why me?!" Labrys shouted

"Because you don't deserve to exist, you fake bitch!" Naoki roared "And...because taking you would get the attention of the Shadow Operatives"

"Then why attract us?" Mitsuru asked

"We need your Persona's...for the reunion" Naoki stated

"_Reunion_?" Yu questioned

"Yeah...we're bringing the chaos back" Naoki smiled "And to do that...we need your Persona, because Persona and Shadow are one and the same, if we take them, they turn back into Shadows...and then those shadows will be combined with the true vessel to bring him back"

"True Vessel?" Yu asked

"Yeah...that would be you" Naoki chuckled, stunning the group "Yu Narukami...it is your duty to become the true vessel!"

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Yumi cried

"We'll use your body for it" Naoki chuckled

"This Higher Power you speak of..." Naoto glared "Who is it?"

"The Attendant at the Moel Gas Station" Naoki shrugged

"W-What?!" Yu questioned "T-That guy?!"

"I've seen that guy around town..." Yosuke recalled

"H-H-Hey...now that I think about it..." Adachi stuttered "When I first heard about the Midnight Channel...it was from him!"

"H-Hey, me too!" Junpei piped in

"So...who is he?" Yu asked "This Attendant has to be more than meets the eye"

"I'm sure he'd be glad to tell you himself" Naoki chuckled "He _is _here after all"

"W-What?! Where?!" Teddie cried

"I-I'm not sensing him..." Fuuka muttered

"Oh, he's here...but he's hidden in plain sight" Naoki laughed again "Minazuki is here too...and so is Shinya...you wanna end it? We're all here..."

"This is all a game to you…" Yosuke growled "How dare you murder people…murder Saki-senpai for such a stupid reason! You bastard…I'll never forgive you!"

"You can keep your forgiveness." Naoki glared "Our world will probably become just like this place soon enough anyways. Didn't you notice? The fog's leaking out. Everything on that side's pretty much screwed…soon, the two worlds will merge and then they'll be no _sides_ anymore"

"Wh-What the hell's he talking about…?" Kanji spat

"This isn't his real body…" Rise gasped as she observed the boy with Kanzeon "The real Adachi is somewhere else. "

"But this guy feels different from an ordinary Shadow…" Teddie stated "It doesn't seem like he's going berserk…"

"Wow, you can tell that much?" Naoki scoffed "This me is just around to greet you guys and thank you for wasting your time by chasing me in here. I'd say this world has taken a real shine to me…I feel like it's given me everything I've ever wanted. And the monsters don't attack me at all. Maybe they can tell we have the same goal…?"

"The Shadows'… goal?" Yukiko questioned

"By the end of the year, Inaba will disappear completely into the fog. Soon, this place will be reality." Naoki said "I'll be in this world, so if you want me, come and get me. This world has a mind of its own. We'll see which of us it favors."

"Keep your bullshit to yourself." Kanji roared as he stormed towards Naoki "It's about time you shut the hell up. We'll finish this right now!"

_SWING_

"What the-" Kanji yelped as the boy vanished just as he swung his fist

_"Dumbass, didn't you hear her say that the real me isn't here? Come on...find me and end this"_

"Get back here, you…!" Chie shouted

"That stuff about the world's mind, and how this place will become our reality…" Yosuke muttered "Was he serious?"

"The rest of his confessions were consistent. We'd best proceed under the assumption that it's no lie." Naoto said

"It felt like…he's gained some strong power after coming here." Rise revealed

"Not only that…maybe he got taken over by that power" Teddie said.

"So what he said about the two worlds becoming one…that's really gonna happen?" Yukiko questioned

"Didn't he say that it would happen by the end of this year!?" Chie shouted "What happens then!?"

"I think he means… this world will engulf the human world." Teddie said "The people in town are acting weird. It's like when the Shadows that emerged from people went berserk. If the fog gets even thicker and this town is completely shut off from the outside world…then…the other side might become full of Shadows, like over here…"

"You mean, everyone's gonna turn into Shadows…!?" Rise cried

"It's practically The Fall all over again..." Akihiko grumbled

"Dammit…damn that bastard!" Yosuke roared

"No more..." Yu said "I don't care if Minazuki or Dad is in there, we go in, find Naoki and end this!"

"We won't let this happen to your town" Mitsuru told them

"Yeah, we've faced guys like this before, we'll deal with this guy, just like we did with them!" Akihiko claimed as he slammed his fist into his other

"We'll knock this guy out!" Junpei cheered

_BARK_

"Koro-chan, me and Ken will help too" Yukari smiled

"And I will help however I can..." Fuuka nodded

"After all this time...I can finally pay them back for Kou" Daisuke said "There's no way I'm backing out now!"

"I want to end this" Yumi said

"Sister, what will you do?" Aigis asked

"You havta ask?" Labrys scoffed "Of course I'm goin' in, and I'm gonna pound the snot outta Minazuki!"

"I sense Adachi's presence from that direction…he's taunting us." Rise said

"Bring it on!" Kanji roared "Let's go kick his ass, right now!"

_BOOM_

"W-Woah!" Kanji yelped as a huge hole opened up in the wall, revealing a black and red vortex

"Is this...the entrance to his world?" Katsuya questioned

"I-It is!" Teddie cried "That's the way in! Naoki is in there!"

"We must face him with all the power at our disposal, and defeat him without fail!" Naoto said with a tip of her hat

"I'm a little worried what he means, _by the end of the year_" Chie stated "But now's not the time to freak out! Let's get prepared! Let's get OVERprepared and leave footprints all over his stupid smug face!"

"Let's end this" Yu nodded "Once and for all..."

**MAGATSU INABA, FLOOR 1**

"What is this place?" Yosuke questioned "It looks like a ruined version of Inaba..."

"The sky is red and black..." Yukiko noted

_"Ahaha! You actually came!?" Naoki's laughter rung "Don't you guys have anything better to do? What a bunch of losers…_Let's find the culprit ourselves! Let's meet up at the special headquarters today! _Am I right, or am I right? Man, it's embarrassing. How old are you guys Ahahahahahahaha! Oh crap, my stomach's hurting…c'mon…we're all students, right? Shouldn't you be studying instead of wasting your time with this? Study hard, get into a good college, work at a respectable company, marry a cute girl…why are you guys so desperate when it comes to something so useless? Won't you regret it once you're adults?"_

"What's up with this guy? Out of all the things we've dealt with in this world, he pisses me off the most!" Rise snapped "We're not letting him get away! Huh? Uh, where are we? Sorry, give me a sec…S-Senpai!"

"What?" Yu asked

"I can't find any exits!" Rise said to him

"I can't sense any either!" Fuuka gasped

"Damn it...!" Akihiko cursed

"What should we do…?" Yukari asked

...

"You see what I see?" Kanji asked the group as he stood before a hole in the group

"You can't be serious...can you?" Yumi gulped

"This...appears to be the only way down" Katsuya noted "If we use our Persona's, we should be able to soften the landing"

"Y-You're serious?" Chie asked

"I-In that case, the boys, should go down first" Yukiko stuttered

"Huh? Why us?" Junpei asked before noticing the girl was gently clinging to her skirt

"Just...go..." Yukari sighed

"Really...going so soon?"

...

"That voice..." Daisuke growled as the group twisted their head around and faced

"Sho Minazuki..." Yu glared

"So that's...Minazuki" Mitsuru muttered

"Sorry...but I'm here" Minazuki chuckled as he unsheathed his blades "So you won't be go-HRK!"

"L-Labrys!" Chie cried out as Labrys grabbed Minazuki by the throat and flew off with him

"NICE 'TA FINALLY MEET YA, YA SON OF A BITCH!" Labrys screamed as they flew across the floor

"I will assist her" Aigis flatly stated

"And me..." Daisuke said "I'm finally face to face with bastard, I'm not letting him get away!"

"Neither will I..." Mitsuru said as she brandished her rapier "The four of us should be enough, you two head on down"

"Are you sure...?" Akihiko questioned

"Yeah...we'll settle this..." Daisuke nodded "You two go and find Naoki"

...

"Come back alive" Yu told him

"We all will..." Mitsuru nodded before Aigis grabbed both Daisuke and Mitsuru and flew off with them

"Minazuki's out of the way" Katsuya noted "Come, we must hurry"

"Yeah..." Yu said as he leaned over the hole "Let's go!"

And with that, they all leapt down the abyss

* * *

"Damn it!" Minazuki roared as he tossed and skid along the floor

"A lotta people have suffered because of you..." Labrys glared as she pulled off the axe on her back

"Tell me something I don't know" Minazuki groaned before noticing the girl was charging at him, the axe overhead

Which he blocked with his Katana

"Stupid bitch" Minazuki scoffed "You think that-"

And whatever words he was going to speak, were cut off by Aigis's arrival and following kick to the jaw, sending him flying back

"Sister..." Aigis greeted as she, Mitsuru and Daisuke stepped down

"Geez..." Minazuki groaned as he pulled himself up "I'd prefer if I could just kill you all with my swords, but I guess I'll have to go the full route, **Persona, Tsukuyomi!**"

"So at last, he reveals it..." Mitsuru muttered as Minazuki's Persona materialized, before she pulling out her evoker

"Mitsuru-san, I sense that isn't nessacery" Aigis claimed "The atmosphere here seems to allow us to summon out Persona's without the need of our evokers"

"I-Is that..." Mitsuru questioned before she was able to summon Artemisia with mere thought "Incredible..."

"Asterius!" Labrys called hers out

"Athena..." Aigis summoned

"Ryujin..." Daisuke uttered with a glare

"So this is it then?" Minazuki laughed "Alright then...hahahaha!"

"What?" Aigis cried as she examined the boy "I sense...a plume of dusk?!"

"What?" Labrys and Mitsuru questioned

"Yes...indeed!" Aigis nodded "There is a plume of dusk within Minazuki!"

...

"Did Ikutsuki do this?" Mitsuru questioned

"You have to ask?" Minazuki glared "Yeah...Ikutsuki inserted a Plume of Dusk in me to grant me a Persona, and it gave birth to another me within myself...I am Minazuki, born to protect Sho and wielder of the Persona; Tsukuyomi!"

"A split personality?" Mitsuru questioned

"Think of it like that if you want...but just know one thing, you'll _all _die here!" Sho told them

"COME ON!" Daisuke roared as the groups charged forward

* * *

"W-Woah!" Junpei cried as the group finally landed on the ground "D-Did we really just summon our Persona's without evokers?"

"'The hell are evokers?" Kanji groaned "Man...didn't know we could use our Persona's to catch us before we fall"

"My gut dropped about six times there..." Yosuke grumbled

"Come on, he can't be far" Yu said as they began to advance forward

But then stood before them;

"D-Dad..." Yu muttered

"Stop this Yu...go back" Shinya said

"Son of a bitch, he's here too?!" Yosuke cursed

"Bastard!" Kanji roared

"All of you...turn back now...please" Shinya pleaded

"That's not gonna happen..." Yumi said to him

"Get out of our way..." Akihiko told him

"I can't let you go on..." Shinya stated as he pulled out a gun

"H-Hey!" Chie gulped

"You won't fire..." Yu glared

"Don't test me Yu..." Shinya said to his son

"Put the gun down..." Naoto demanded

"You stay out of this too..." He demanded

"So...tell me one thing dad" Yu said to him "How...how did you get involved in all this?"

...

"I...I came here on May 26" Shinya revealed "Your Mom...I knew she would come back to Inaba, so I came too, intent on finding her and you...but before I could meet both of you...I met _him_"

"Who...?" Yu questioned "The Moel Gas Station Attendant?"

"I...I..." Shinya stuttered "He...showed up out of nowhere one night, the cold way he looked me made me feel like he could see my thoughts, he had silver hair and almost transparent alabaster skin. He had this strange presence to him, the kind you wouldn't expect from a man...he spoke to me"

_"Your son is a very special boy, I would be glad...if you could assist me against him"_

"After that...I blacked out and I woke up in the Gas Station, where I was held hostage by him and the red haired boy, they wouldn't let me leave...b-but they promised me. That if I obeyed them, they would make a new world...a world where I could have you and Motoko back and Naoto would be safe"

...

A dark haze hung over the eyes of Yu and Naoto, covering their eyes

"Y-You're my children..." Shinya whimpered as he lowered the gun "I-I had no choice but to obey him"

...

"You could have fought back" Yosuke glared

"I know...but I wanted my wife and son back!" Shinya sobbed "I wanted you back so much, I-"

...

"You wanted us back so much, you sold out everything..." Yu muttered as he and Naoto approached him

"Everything I did...I did it for you...and Motoko, and even Naoto!" Shinya cried as his two children stood before him "It was all for you..."

"Go to hell" Yu and Naoto simultaneously stated as both his children drew their fists back and smashed them into his face

"Y-Yu?!" Chie called out as the two knocked their father down, who clutched his nose

"Naoto...?" Kanji questioned

"Come on..." She said "Let's go..."

"W-What about him?" Yukiko asked

"He can't do anything...just leave him" Yu stated as he and Naoto walked over his downed body

...

"Come on..." Chie said as the group followed them, walking past the downed man

...

"Yu..." Shinya whimpered

* * *

Clashing sounds echoed throughout the area as each one of Labrys' axe swings was parried by Minazuki's with his Katana's. Each strike causing minature shockwaves which caused remnants of the floor to fly up into the air

"Bufu!" Mitsuru called out but Minazuki quickly backflipped over the ice blast

"Missiles!" Aigis called out as she fired said projectile

"Oh come on!" Minazuki roared as he used Tsukuyomi to swipe them away, causing small explosions "4 on 1 is real bullshit, y'know!"

And just as he said that, Daisuke charged through the smoke caused by the explosions of the missiles, his fist drawn back

Which Minazuki caught and judo flipped him over, intending to stab down with blade, only to have to dodge a strike from Mitsuru's rapier

However, as he did, a hit from Labrys' rocket punch sent him flying into a nearby wall

"Son of a-" Minazuki groaned before Labrys flew forward, driving her fist into his gut

"Finally...finally, you son of a-" Labrys growled

"Sister, get back!" Aigis called

"Wha-" Labrys began to question before she noticed the wicked smile on his face, followed by the words;

"Ziodyne"

"Labrys!" Daisuke shouted as the girl was struck by the lightning blast

"ORGIA MODE!" Aigis cried before flying forward, only for Minazuki to lead out and knee her in the face

"Artemisia!" Mitsuru called out but was unable to do anything before, Minazuki landed a kick to her gut

"Damn it!" Daisuke shouted as he attempted a bicycle kick which Minazuki blocked who then attempted to slash away but Daisuke jumped back to avoid them as he summoned Ryujin, who struck Tsukuyomi with its tail, stunning Minazuki, an opportunity Daisuke took to clock him in the jaw

"Finally!" Daisuke roared as Minazuki stumbled back, his lip now bleeding "I finally got a shot at your damn head..."

...

"Bastard..." Minazuki growled as blood leaked from one corner of his mouth

* * *

"Man, how many of these holes are there?!" Kanji groaned as they leapt down another

"I can't see anything" Chie groaned as fog laid in front of them

"Wait...I hear something" Katsuya said as inhuman noises reached the ears of the group

"What...is that?" Yumi questioned

And then as the mist parted, they found the source of the noise

An absolute plethora of shadows

"Holy-!" Junpei yelped

"Holy crap!" Chie gasped

"There's...hundreds of them..." Yukari gulped

"Shit..." Adachi cursed

"S-Senpai..." Rise muttered "I can feel and exit at the end of this floor and below it...I can feel him! Naoki is on the floor beneath this one!"

"But to get there..." Kanji mumbled

"We have to plow through all of these" Naoto finished

"Shit..." Yu cursed

"There's so many..." Ken said in awe

"If Naoki is one the bottom floor..." Rise stated "Then we should clear a path for Senpai!"

"Huh?" Yu questioned

"Yeah, we'll blow them all way and open the way up for you Sensei!" Teddie cheered

"A-Are you guys sure?" Yu questioned

"No doubt!" Yumi nodded

"Find that bastard and end it!" Kanji roared

"In that case...I'll go too" Yosuke said out of the blue

"Yosuke?" Yu questioned

"I'll end that bastard for what he did to Saki...c'mon bro" Yosuke nodded "Let's finish this"

...

"Okay" Yu agreed

"Okay, line up everyone!" Katsuya commanded "We need to part these Shadows down the middle!"

"Right!" They all shouted in unison

"You two get ready!" Adachi said to Yu and Yosuke

"Be safe..." Chie said as she planted a long kiss on him "Come back alive..."

"I will..." Yu told her

_CLAMP_

"Hmm?" Yosuke questioned as Yukiko planted her hand on his shoulder "Yu-"

_SMOOCH_

And then he froze in place as Yukiko placed a small kiss on his cheek

"Come back safe...okay?" Yukiko pleaded

...

"Yeah..." Yosuke nodded

"Okay, get ready!" Kanji roared as they all summoned their Persona's

"Let's go" Yu nodded to Yosuke

"We'll end this" Yosuke nodded back

"NOW!" Katsuya roared as they all fired the blasts from their Persona's

* * *

"ASTERIUS, AGIDYNE!" Labrys screamed as he Persona breathed a torrent of fire at Minazuki, who used his Persona to shield himself

"Artemisia!" Mitsuru called out "Bufudyne!"

"Damn it!" Minazuki cursed as his feet were frozen to the floor

"Now Aigis!" Daisuke shouted

"Athena!" Aigis summoned as her Persona charged forward, intent of slamming into Minazuki, who was able to shatter the ice and lead into the air and avoid the Persona

"Do you really think that will be enough to stop me!?" Minazuki roared

Before Labrys flew back, and slashed his back wide open with her axe

"D-Damn it!" Minazuki cried before aiming his blade at Labrys, only for Ryujin to crash into him and send him flying away

_"S-Shit...am I really going to lose here?!" He cried "No...no way! Not until I get that world!"_

"He's on the defensive, don't let up!" Mitsuru commanded

"ENOUGH! Minazuki roared "THAT'S IT! TIME TO END THIS! **GOD AND DEMON ANNIHILATION!**"

"G-Get back!" Daisuke called as a huge torrent of energy shot up from Tsukuyomi which Aigis and Labrys managed to dodge in time

"That was close..." Labrys muttered as the energy began to fade, revealing;

Nothing

"He's...gone?" Aigis questioned

"Look..." Daisuke pointed out "There's a hole in the ground..."

"So, he used that technique to blow a hole through the floor to escape..." Mitsuru muttered

"Do we go after him?" Daisuke questioned

...

"It could be a trap" Aigis suggested "Perhaps it would be best if we rejoined the others"

"Damn..." Labrys cursed

* * *

"This is it..." Yu declared as he and Yosuke arrived on the final floor

"Yeah..." Yosuke agreed "We-"

"SENSEI! YOSUKE!"

"Wha-Teddie?!" Yosuke cried out as the bear ran up from behind him

"What are you doing here?" Yu questioned

"I...I want to help!" Teddie declared "I...I haven't been much use as of late...I...I know I can help here though! I can help you here...I know it!"

...

"The more the better" Yosuke shrugged

"Yeah" Yu nodded "Come on...let's find him"

A short run ensued, dashing along the red floors of Magatsu Izanagi

Until the arrived in an area with a pure red sky and large circular floor, and in the center stood their target...

"So you made it..." Naoki spat

"Of course, we'll never let you get away with this" Yu glared

"Then you'll just have to die" Naoki sneered

"Who the hell do you think you are?!" Yosuke spat

"The man who's tearing this world apart to build a new, better one!" Naoki roared "I'm ending this shitty reality...I'm the man who sold the world"

"No. You're just a murderer!" Yosuke snapped "If you had been a normal person and had tried the TV once out of curiosity, you would have been surprised and scared of what had happened, regretted what you had done, and never done it again. But you yielded to the power and now you think you're some kind of god. In the end, you're nothing more than a crazy Serial Killer. That's all you are. Nothing more and nothing less!"

"You're so self-righteous" Naoki gurgled "Let's be honest. There's nothing great about the real world, is there? It's just dull and annoying as hell. No one accepts that's the way things are…they're just stuck with it because they can't deny it, either. Those who actually succeed in life… They just happen to be born with the magic ticket called _talent_."

"Bullshit!" Yu roared "You're just a little pissy because _Mommy _didn't love you!"

"You shut up!" Naoki snapped, clearly offended "So damned naïve…you piss me off.

Once everyone turns into Shadows…they'll still keep on living, oblivious to all the things around them…so how's that different from the way it is now? No, this'll make things much easier for everyone."

"Easier…? What the hell are you talking about!?" Yosuke snapped

"C'mon! How many people out there actually think about what's real, or what's right and wrong?" Naoki questioned "Next to none, I bet. It's useless to think about those things in the first place. You don't get anything out of facing reality, and there's no way to change it either. I mean, what could be more boring than brooding over things you can't change? It's better to just ignore them and believe only what you want to believe in life."

"No-bear-dy thinks like that!" Teddie shouted

"You're just a little brat who wants to be alone!" Yosuke roared "You're no different from a child throwing a tantrum!"

"People can't live alone" Yu claimed "If you sever your ties to humanity, it will become hard to live in. Yet you refuse to face life and admit your fault, running from your own humanity like a coward. And though you claim to find life troublesome, you caused nothing but trouble for others! You're nothing more than an immature, egotistic brat!"

...

"That's it..." Naoki growled "Let's finish this! My power against yours! **Persona; Izanami!**"

"I-Izanami?" Yu questioned as the Persona with appearance of a silver haired woman in a robe appeared behind Naoki

"It doesn't matter!" Yosuke shouted as he summonded Susano-o "We can't fall now just because of a name! This is our last fight...we can't hold back!"

...

"You're right" Yu nodded before he summoned Izanagi-no-Okami "Let's end this Naoki..."

* * *

Title inspired by the David Bowie song of the same name


	25. Shin Kami Tensei

**SHIN KAMI TENSEI**

"I'll do my beary best to help Sensei!" Teddie piped in "I-"

"Izanami!" Naoki called as the Persona battle Teddie away like a fly

"T-Teddie!" Yosuke called as Teddie soared through the air

"Look at that...we've gone from 3-on-1 to 2-on-1, just like that" Naoki grinned "Let's see if I can get rid of you two just as easily"

"You bastard" Yosuke growled as he gripped his naito "I...I'm going to beat the everloving shit outta you! I'm gonna avenge Saki!"

"With the life she was living, she was already dead" Naoki spat "You know...you can leave too, go on...before I kill you as well"

"I'm not going anywhere you son of a bitch!" Yosuke roared

"We're going to end this right now and we'll drag your bloody wreck of a body back out the TV" Yu said with a glare "We're not gonna kill you...we're gonna make you suffer for what you did"

...

"This world will die along with you two" Naoki stated "You'll be its last offering!"

"Enough..." Yu said "Let's end this already Naoki"

And then the three charged into battle

* * *

"So...you and Yosuke-senpai" Rise said as Kanzeon smashed two shadows against each other "How long has that being going on?"

"I wouldn't say anything is going on" Yukiko stated as she set a group of Shadows ablaze with Amaterasu "Though I suppose we do have a date tomorrow..."

"Hey, you two!" Chie called out as she used God Hand to flatten a large beetle shadow "What're you gossiping about in a time like this?"

"Oh, Chie-Senpai didn't see the kiss, eh?" Rise giggled "Wonder how she'll react"

"S-She doesn't need to know right now" Yukiko gulped "She kept her and Yu-kun from me for a while...I'm sure she doesn't need to know about Yosuke for now..."

"Are you seriously taking out Shadows with your fists?!" Kanji questioned

"It's how I've always done it" Akihiko shrugged before ramming his fist through a shadows head

"Hardcore..." Kanji muttered before flattening a shadow with his folding chair

"Home...Run!" Junpei called out before decapitating a shadow with his bat

"Heat Kaiser!" Katsuya called out as Hyperion evisirated a group of Shadows

"Magatsu-Izanagi, Garudyne!" Adachi shouted as his the razor wind tore a few shadows apart

"There's so damn many of them!" Yukari cursed as she stabbed a shadow with an arrow

"Bark!" Koromaru agreed as his Persona ripped a shadow apart

"I can't even count how many there are!" Ken cried as he stabbed one with his spear

"There's more incoming!" Fuuka cried as another wave appeared

"Oh hell..." Kanji cursed

"Asterius!"

"Whoa!" Rise cried as the large raging bull descended as flattened a bunch of Shadows

"Mitsuru, Aigis!" Akihiko called as the two reappeared along with Daisuke and Labrys

"Wait, so if you're back, then you took care of Minazuki?" Yumi questioned

"He fled" Daisuke growled

"What! How?!" Chie cried

"He used his Persona to blow a hole through the floor and escaped through it" Mitsuru revealed

"I see..." Yukari grumbled

"There's so many of 'em..." Labrys gasped

"In that case..." Aigis muttered before revealing every weapon in her arsenal "ORGIA MODE EX!"

"Oh shi-Everyone get down!" Junpei yelped

* * *

"Agidyne!"

"Look out!" Yosuke called as he and Yu rolled out of the way of the fire blast

"Where'd he go?!" Yu cried as Naoki vanished, only to reappear behind him

"Look out!" Yosuke called but Yu had already been battered away by Izanami "Damn it! Susano-o!"

Susano-o flew forward, intending to strike Naoki who blocked with Izanami, who proceeded to clash over and over again, sending shockwaves through the air, pushing Yosuke and Naoki back

"Is that all you've got?!" Naoki spat "In that case, I won't even try to have to kill you!"

"There's no way I'm dying here" Yosuke glared

"Neither of us are!" Yu roared as he charged back into the frey, leaping into the air and summoning Izanagi-no-Okami "Hamaon!"

"Mudoon!" Naoki prepared a dark counter-blast

And the two blasts collided, causing a massive explosion, blowing all three back and making a crater where the floor once laid

* * *

"W-What was that?!" Chie gasped at the sound of the explosion rang through, causing the floor to rumble

"It came from below!" Yukari noted

"A-Are Yu-kun and Yosuke-kun safe?" Yukiko asked

"What the hell is going on down there?!" Kanji cursed

"Damn it!" Labrys cursed as she once again summoned Asterius "We gotta get rid of all these Shadows!"

"Right!" Akihiko roared before summoning; "Ceaser!"

* * *

"Damn it..." Shinya sighed as he continued to lay on the floor, the sounds of the explosion even reaching him "Yu...stop please...

...

I-I can't"

Gripping the gun on his hand, Shinya Narukami pulled himself up to his feet, starting out into the abyss that was the sky of Magatsu Izanagi

"I won't let you die..."

And with that, he began to walk down the path he had seen the group take earlier, intent on pursuing his son

* * *

"Damn it!" Yosuke growled as he and Susano-o dropped down in the crater make by the clash of Hamaon and Mudoon, the arms of his jacket burned "Bro, couldn't you warn me when you do that?!"

"Sorry!" Yu apologized as he jumped down after him, his shoulder cut "But...did I get him?"

"You're not gonna kill me with an attack like that" Naoki spat as he walked through the smoke, a small cut on his left cheek

"Like I said...I'm not gonna kill you" Yu glared

...

"Fine then..." Naoki spat "Inazagi-no-Okami was it? Fine then...let's put this on equal grounds, **IZANAMI-NO-OKAMI!**"

"H-H-Holy shit!" Yosuke cried as Naoki's Persona transformed into a multiple-story inhuman-like monster with several arms

"Izanami-no-Okami is the strongest Persona there is!" Naoki roared "From this moment on...this is the moment this world died and the world of Shadows begins!

**WORLD'S END!**"

"W-W-Woah, shit!" Yosuke cried out as a torrent of water flooded into the crated, sweeping them away

"Yosuke!" Yu called out

"This is it!" Naoki roared as Izanagi-no-Okami flew its hands up

"No way!" Yosuke shouted as he summonded Susano-o who threw him out of the ater

"We're going to defeat you!" Yu roared as Izanagi-no-Okami launched him up

"ARE YOU THIS EAGER TO DIE!?" Naoki roared before Izanagi-no-Okami flew its arms down "Now, Izanami-no-Okami, finish it, use the last phase of **WORLD'S END!**

"**GARUDYNE!**" Yosuke shouted

"**MYRIAD TRUTHS!**" Yu called

And then, a blast that could only be compared to several bombs going off, completely leveled the area

* * *

"Holy shit!" Chie screamed as the explosion caused a large section of the floor to blast open

"W-What was that?!" Kanji cried

"It was a large sum of energy from Yu-san, Yosuke-san and Konishi's Persona's exploding all together at once..." Fuuka stated as she examined it with Juno

"Are they okay?!" Rise cried

"I...I can't sense anything" Fuuka gulped

"Damn it, we have to get down there!" Daisuke cursed

"That explosion took out a few dozen, but there's still so many here" Katsuya growled

"Damn it...there's no end to them!" Adachi cried

...

"I won't let them die!" Naoto cursed "I only just found out I had a brother, I'm not losing him!"

"Damn right!" Chie shouted "I told Yu that if he ever died that I would smack his corpse so bad he would come back to life just to beg for mercy!"

"I made Yosuke-kun a promise...I won't let him die, or let myself die!" Yukiko shouted

...

"Kou...even though you're not here anymore...I can still feel you standing beside me" Daisuke muttered "I know I can do this...we can...let's go save Narukami and Hanamura!"

"Alright, this is it!" Akihiko shouted "Let's clear out the last of them!"

* * *

"Gah!" Naoki cried as he fell to the ground, his right arm severy burned and his shoes burned off "A-Are...they dead?"

His answer was granted he noticed a figure in the smoke, Yu Narukami, his jacket burned off and his face blood, stumbling towards him

"D-Damn it..." Naoki cursed as he pulled himself up before he tried to summon his Persona "W-What?! D-Damn it, I don't have enough energy left?! I-"

Whatever words he was going to say were cut off as Yu launched an uppercut into his gut, sending him several inches into the air. Airtime which Naoki used to bring his elbow down into the top of Yu's skull.

As he landed and Yu stumbled, Naoki grabbed him by the throat, choking him before kneeing him in the guy and throwing him to the ground. Naoki then proceed to mount him, screaming his lungs out and he rammed his fists into Yu's face over and over again. Continuing to scream as Yu's face became bloodier. Punching him over and over again until Yu managed to catch his fist and grabbed his thumb, snapping it out of its socket. As Naoki screamed in agony, Yu's upper body shot up, headbutting Naoki, breaking his nose and sending him off of him.

Spitting blood from his mouth Yu rose up, and charged at Naoki, delivering a fist of his Jaw.

Naoki then countered with a fist to Yu's gut and it proceeded on

Yu kneed him in the the chest

Naoki kicked in him in the face

Yu elbowed him in the throat

Naoki clocked him the jaw

Yu superman-punched him in the shoulder

Naoki booted him in the knee

Yu delivered an uppercut to his Jaw

Naoki elbowed him in the heart

This went on and on until the strength left their bodies and they fell to their knees, leaning on each other to prevent them falling to the ground, still laying blows on each other, though significantly weaker than before

Until Naoki managed to get a lucky strike in, poking Yu in the eye and headbutting him, knocking him down

"Finally..." Naoki panted as he pulled himself up "I finally have enough energy"

And with that, he re-summoned Izanami

"So long...Yu Naru-"

"NAOKI!"

He wasn't sure what stunned him more, the loud shout or the face that he had forgotten about Yosuke

Who charged from behind him, his face cut, his jacket burned and with a Naito in his hand

Which, as Naoki turned out, he stabbed into his eye

"AHHHHHHHHH!" Naoki screamed

Screaming in pain, Naoki yanked the blade out, taking his eye with it, in agony and fury, he used Izanami to slash Yosuke, cutting the boy wide open

"BASTARD! BASTARD **BASTARD!**" Naoki screamed "You-!"

"Naoki!" Yu called out, gaining Naoki's attention before ramming his jaw into his face, knocking him down

"Bas-" Naoki began to curse as he grabbed Yosuke's knife, intending to stab Yu

Only for Yu to wind his sword down and take his hand completely off

"AHHHH!" Naoki screamed evern more

"This...is for Mayumi Yamano" Yu growled as he threw his sword away, mounted Naoki and smashed his fist into his face

_**SMACK**_

"This is for Saki, your sister!"

_**SMACK**_

"Ah!" Naoki cried

"This is for Taro Namatame!"

_**SMACK**_

"Ahhh!"

"This is for Yukiko!"

_**SMACK**_

"Ahhhh!"

"This is for Kou!"

_**SMACK**_

"Ahhhhh!"

"This is for Daisuke!"

_**SMACK**_

"AHH!"

"This is for Kanji!"

_**SMACK**_

"AHH!"

"For Rise!"

_**SMACK**_

"AHHH!"

"And Yumi!"

_**SMACK**_

"AHHH!"

"For Ayane!"

_**SMACK**_

"AHHHHHH!"

"For Adachi-san!"

_**SMACK**_

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

"For Labrys!"

_**SMACK**_

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"FOR NAOTO, MY SISTER!"

_**SMACK**_

"AND NANAKO!"

_**SMACK**_

"AND MY UNCLE DOJIMA!"

_**SMACK**_

"AND MY MOTHER!"

_**SMACK**_

"This...is for Yosuke..."

_**SMACK**_

"For Chie..."

_**SMACK**_

"And this..." Yu growled as he stood up, holding a bloody and barely conscious Naoki by the collar of his shirt" This one is for me"

_**SMACK**_

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Naoki screamed as he was knocked back to the ground "N-No...this can't be it..."

"I don't feel the slightest bit of guilt for this" Yu said to him "I don't even have an ounce of pity for you. We're talking you back to the real world Naoki...It's Ove-"

_**SHUNK**_

...

Time seemed to freeze at that exact moment

His eyes widened and breath hitched in his throat, mixed with the blood that was now filling his lungs, small gasps escaped his mouth along with small spurts of the red liquid. Falling to knee's, his insides felt like they were on fire, gazing his eyes down, he saw something jutting out from his chest. There, covered in his own blood, was a blade that had been jutted through his back and through his chest.

_His _blade, that he had thrown down just a moment earlier

"Y-Yu! Yosuke cried

Feeling himself falling feint, he feel to his side, his blood pouring from his wounds. His brain had yet to fully comprehend what had truly happened. He realized that it couldn't of been Naoki who stabbed him as he was in front of him. Sho? Perhaps, but why would Sho have used his sword instead of his own blades? He twisted his head around, blood still trailing from his mouth as he attempted to gaze at his attacker. His vision began to blur in and out as he finally spotted his attacker. His eyes began to focus as the figure stood there, unmoving. And finally, he was able to identify his attacker

And then his eyes widened, as there stood, in his human form with a sadistic look in his eyes and wicked smile on his face;

Teddie

"T-Teddie! What the hell?!" Yosuke shouted

"Wow Sensei, that looked like it hurt" He chuckled

...

"T-Teddie..." Yu muttered "What...w-why..."

"Why did I stab you?" Teddie questioned as he knelt down to Yu's level and grabbed the hilt of the sword "I wanted to see how'd you react..."

_**SHUNK**_

Yu's roared in agony as Teddie yanked the blade out from his chest and proceeded to stand up, swing the blade a few times to whip the blood off

"Oh shut up" Teddie grumbled as he lifted the blade above his head "Don't you have a Persona that can heal you? That wound should be nothing for you"

_**SHUNK**_

"Yu!" Yosuke called out

Yu's eyes slammed shut as Teddie swung the sword down, expecting his life to end. However, as he heard the sound of the blade being stabbed into the ground beside him, he opened his eyes and faced the blond boy with a crazed look his eyes, which were no longer blue, rather; the left was now yellow and the right was red.

"Don't worry, I won't kill you" Teddie laughed "Not yet anyway..."

"Teddie...why?" Yu gurgled

"What the hell...what the hell are you doing Teddie?!" Yosuke shouted

...

"Did you not find it odd?" Teddie asked "An entire world, a new dimension filled with monsters and demons...and you just so happen to meet a friendly little bear when you step in for the first time? Did you all just think it was a crazy coincidence? Did you really think you were that lucky...? A cheerful being who could navigate this world despite having no Persona?

So naive...you were all just puppets, and I was the one pulling the strings"

...

"You..."

"Yu!" Came the approaching voice of Chie as she and the others quickly ran to the scene

"Senpai!" Kanji yelled to the downed Yu

"Yosuke-kun, what's wrong?!" Yukiko cried out

"Oh look, it's the rest of the them" Teddie spat in disgust

"Teddie, what happened?!" Rise asked as the group stopped before them

"Yo, Ted!" Kanji called out as Teddie began to walk away from them, heading towards Naoki

"Teddie?" Yumi questioned

"You bastard...!" Naoki spat as boy stood before him "We...had a deal!"

"W-What?!" Kanji questioned

"What's going on?" Akihiko asked

"I threw all those people in the TV just like you asked and...you were supposed to..." Naoki growled "You were supposed to give me the power to kill everyone!"

...

"T-Teddie..." Yukiko muttered

"No...way..." Yu muttered

"You...you..." Yosuke repeared in shock

"Ha...ha...hahaha...hahahaHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH**AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**"

"Ted?!" Kanji questioned as the blond boy threw his head back and roared with laughter

"Teddie...that...is that true?!" Yosuke roared

"ALL OF YOU SHUT UP!"

All flinched at the loud roar, before the boy snapped his head back, showing an expression of pure manic hatred

"ALL YOU DAMN HUMANS SHOULD JUST SHUT UP AND DIE ALREADY! ANNOYING PIECES OF SHIT!" Teddie roared "YOU'RE ALL COMPLETE AND UTTER WASTES OF BLOOD AND FLESH! YOU WERE SO EASY TO PLAY FOR THE FOOLS THAT YOU WERE!"

...

"You...you're the true perpetrator...aren't you?" Mitsuru questioned

"Teddie..." Yu muttered

"THAT IS NOT MY NAME!" The blond boy roared

...

"That...is not my name" Teddie stated once more "That foolish bear...that blond, innocent, naive child...Teddie...was a farce. _Teddie_ never existed"

"You..." Yosuke muttered

"Do you know how sickening it was?!" _Teddie_ spat as he ripped off his dress shirt "To pretend to be that naive fool?! That idiotic bear spewing those damn puns all the time?! That little pretty boy?! Every second I had to be _Teddie _made me sick!"

...

"Who...who are you?!" Chie snapped

"I am not a Shadow...I am a fragment..." _Teddie _explained "I can take any form I wish...and it's because of that...that I met Yu Narukami before he even entered the TV world"

Teddie's form then seemed to be enveloped in black goo, but when the goo faded away, there stood someone Yu didn't expect to see

"You...the Gas Station Attendant!"

"That's right..." He chuckled "That Gas Station Attendant you met on the first day was I...and it was then that I implanted a small piece of my power within you..."

"You..." Yu muttered

"Don't you remember?" He questioned "You began to feel feint right afterwards...and then you should have had a strange dream that night..."

"You..."

"I implanted my power in you..." He noted "For I knew if I did..._he _would come out of hiding and grant you a Persona"

"What are you talking about?!" Kanji snapped "What the hell is all this?"

"I did the same with him..." He stated with a point to Naoki "And he too was granted a Persona to protect against me...however, his heart was filled with darkness, while you seeked to solve this case and save others...the fragment of my power within you faded...but with a heart of pure black and hatred...it remained with Naoki..."

"What the hell are you saying?!" Yosuke snapped "Teddie, what is all this?!"

"I told you before, that is _not _my name" Teddie spat before chuckling "But I'm glad you asked, because I _really _wanted to see your faces as I explained all of this to you"

"Yo..." Came a far away voice

"Ah good, Sho..." He chuckled

"Damn it, not him too!" Kou snapped

"What the-Oh shit, is it finally happening?!" Sho asked as he witnessed the scene

"Indeed..." The Attendant smiled

"What the hell is even going on?!" Rise asked

"Remember when I threw the Android into the TV?" The Attendant questioned before shapeshifting back into _Teddie _"When you did battle in the G1 Grand Prix, small fragments of your Persona's broke off and were transferred to this world...and it mixed into the fog"

And with that, the farmiliar fog entered the room

"What?" Chie questioned

"And the fog...is a part of me" _Teddie _explained as the familiar mist began to seep out of his body "I..._am _the fog...this mist that controls the shadows...this fog...this world...was created by me"

"You...you're the reason these Shadows have been attacking us!" Adachi snapped

"Not only that, but remember when Ai Ebihara and Kou Ichijo entered this world at the same time and all the Shadows went after the girl and I explained that I didn't sense her?" _Teddie _questioned "Not only did I sense her, I manipulated the shadows into devouring her..."

"Y-You bastard!" Kou roared

"I had hoped her death would have stopped you in you tracks...that you would lose hope and your Persona's would revert back into Shadows and I could use their power to accomplish my goal...but you didn't give up...and you went on with your lives" _Teddie _spat "So I made the G1 Grand Prix and used my power of the fog to have small fragments of your Persona's break off and absorb their power..."

"You bastard, what the hell are you even trying to achieve?!" Kanji shouted

"I needed your power...and mine...as well as a host" _Teddie _stated as he walked over to Naoki and held him up by his hair "And so, I contacted this boy...gave him the power to kill...and promised him to exterminate the world...but all along, he was just a puppet for my goal"

"You...bastard!" Naoki grunted "Y-You told me that Yu Narukami would be the vessel!"

"Such an easy boy to manipulate" _Teddie _smiled "So gullible..."

"Stop it!" Yosuke shouted before they sensed an approaching presence

"None of you move!" The voice commanded as he held up a gun

"You..." Kanji noted "Senpai's dad!"

"W-What the hell is this?!" Shinya snapped at _Teddie _as he noticed the downed Yu"Y-You promised you wouldn't hurt them!"

"He won't bleed out, providing he gets healed soon" He stated

"Damn it, this wasn't part of the deal!" Shinya shouted "Y-You were supposed to help me get my family back!"

"You too...were just a means to an end..." _Teddie _stated "Even I couldn't repair the damage you had done to your life"

"Damn it, you son of a bitch!" Shinya roared as he pointed his gun at the blond boy

"Oh, I wouldn't do that old man" Sho laughed as he unsheathed his Katana

"Stop, please!" Naoto pleaded "Please, this situation has already gotten out of hand, we don't need this to break out, calm down!"

"You shut up..." Shinya growled as he cocked the gun

"Come on..." Sho chuckled

"You piece of shi-"

"Father!"

"Naoto?" Kanji questioned

"Father...stop" Naoto pleaded

"Naoto..." Shinya mumbled

"Calm down...please" Naoto muttered "Nothing good will come of this"

...

"You...called me..." Shinya muttered as he lowered his gun

"You humans...pathetic" _Teddie _spat

"Teddie..." Yosuke muttered

"How many times must I tell you?!" He snapped before throwing Naoki down "THAT IS NOT MY NAME!"

The black goo surrounded his body once more, wrapping him up once more. When it melted off, there stood a body with long flowing blond hair, a yellow left eye and a red right eye, his torso uncovered and barefoot, his body covered in tattoo like markings up and down with his body, the jeans he wore in his human Teddie form were now torn and ragged but served as his only piece of clothing

"I am the fog of this world...I am Nyog'sothep" He claimed "I was created for this very purpose, to bring back my master..."

"That's...Teddie...?" Rise gasped

"W-What the hell are you even talking about?!" Kanji snapped

"Long ago...my master was defeated and lost most of his power, but before he lost it all, he created me...I took up residence in this town and created the TV World" He stated "I allowed you to gain power...so I could one day take it..."

"What is all this? What are you saying?" Yukiko questioned

"Your power will serve me...and I will take it and give it to him" Nyog'sothep explained as he picked up Naoki by the hair "I needed a host, a _true vessel_...and since he has my power within him...he has _his _power within him. And he is suitable"

"What...what the hell are you even talking about?!" Yosuke snapped

"Ah...AHHHH!" Naoki screamed as his veins appeared through his skin and began to pulse

"Stop!" Chie shouted but the presence of Sho halted her from moving any further

"What...are you doing?!" Naoki screamed

"Naoki Konishi...be honored" Nyog'sothep stated as the boy continued to scream in agony before small balls of golden light appeared and faded into him

"Those are the Persona fragments...is he...giving him power?!" Naoto questioned

"Be honored...for you shall serve as the host" Nyog'sothep stated again before the black ooze leaked from him and began to cover Naoki, muffling his screams "It is time"

And with that, he let go of the boy who at this point, was concealed completely by the black ooze, which began to pulse

And then exploded, shooting a large red light into the sky

"W-What the hell?!" Kanji shouted as the light shot into the sky and died everything red

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Naoki's voice screamed before its pitch lowered and began to sound demonic

"Yes, Yes!" Nyog'sothep laughed as the ground began to shake "HE'S BACK!"

"W-What did you do?!" Yu roared

"**TREMBLE HUMANS! AND DESPAIR!**" Nyog'sothep laughed "**CRY IN TERROR AND SCREAM YOUR HEART OUT, AS YOU WITNESS THE REBIRTH OF LORD NYARLATHOTEP!**"

* * *

Shin Kami Tensei - New God Rebirth

Bet you didn't see that one coming, huh?

So Nyog'sothep is essentially a long haired Teddie with Demi-fiend's tattoo's (Demi-fiend being the protag of Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne/Lucifer's Call)


	26. Elegia

**ELEGIA**

"**AHHHHHHHHHHHH!**"

"D-Did I...hear that right...?" Katsuya gasped "Oh...god no!"

"What's happening?!" Mitsuru cried as the group was pushed back by the torrent of energy bursting out of Naoki

"Ah!" Yu yelped as he and Yosuke were blown back by the torrent

"What the hell?!" Kanji roared

"**AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**"

"Teddie!" Yukiko called out

"Teddie is no more..." Nyog'sothep glared "No, rather...Teddie _never even existed _to begin with"

"What the hell is all this!?" Daisuke shouted "What were we to you?!"

"Puppets..." Nyog'sothep chuckled "And very good puppets at that...I worked close to all of you to prevent you getting suspicious about me, such blind arrogance"

"I'm surprised you didn't see it, he's a terrible actor" Sho laughed

"And now...it's time" Nyog'sothep stated

With his words, the torrent of energy faded, and in where it once stood, was Naoki, completely healed, seemingly normal

But with bright yellow eyes

"So...once more, I am given form..." Came a voice from his mouth that was definately not Naoki's

"Master...welcome back" Nyog'sothep kneeled before him

"So, it's you, Nyog..." He smiled "So, this is your doing...well done, I was smart to create you"

"Thank you, my lord" Nyog'sothep nodded

"N-Naoki?" Yu questioned "No...something's...different"

"I-I..." Rise gasped "I dunno why, but...just looking at this guy...it's like-"

"Staring into an abyss..." Naoto muttered

"Greetings, young ones..." _Naoki _smiled "Allow me to introduce myself...I have many names, such as the Crawling Chaos, but you may call me Nyarlathotep..."

_BANG_

"Katsuya!" Mitsuru cried as the Detective fired his gun

"Go back to hell Monster!" Katsuya shouted

"My...there's a face I have not seen a long time" Nyarlathotep smiled, opening up his hand, revealing the bullet he caught from Katsuya's gun "Hello there Suou boy...how's your brother?"

"Bastard!" Katsuya roared as he reloaded "Hyperion!"

"Katsuya, calm down!" Mitsuru demanded

"You don't understand!" He cried "We can't let him escape!"

"I see you remember what I'm capable of..." Nyarlathotep sneered "Well then...since there are a lot here who don't...allow me to demonstrate"

"R-Run!" Katsuya cried "Eve-"

_BOOM_

His words were interrupted as a massive explosion arose from Nyarlathotep, blasting the entire party back, charring their flesh and cutting their skin

"Nyog'sothep, who was the boy this body belonged to?" Nyarlathotep asked his servernt

"A boy by the name of Naoki Konishi, m'lord" He told him

"I see...it appears I am able to harness the power of this boys Persona" Nyarlathotep hummed "A whole new catalogue of powers...how very amusing"

"W-What the hell..." A badly bleeding Kanji muttered

"I...can't move my legs..." Yukiko panted

"Can we just kill him now?" Sho spat

"Nyog'sothep, who is this boy?" Nyarlathotep questioned

"That is Sho...he is my..._associate_" He stated

"I see..." Nyarlathotep muttered before noting Shinya "And him?"

"He _was _an associate" Nyog'sothep spat "Now...he's nothing, his usefulness has expired"

"You...bastard!" Shinya shouted as he aimed his gun

"If his usefulness is no longer required..." Nyatlathotep hummed as he picked up Yu's katana

"Stay back!" Shinya screamed as he fired bullet after bullet from his gun, each bullet sinking into Nyarlathotep's body, but leaving no wound "W-What the hell?!"

"The futility of humans is so pathetic..." Nyarlathotep spat "You fired six shots...it appears you are done..."

...

"You son of a bitch..." Shinya cursed as he threw down the gun "Fine...you wanna kill me?!...Go ahead..."

"Humanity..." Nyarlathotep laughed as he jabbed the blade forward

_"Motoko...Yu...Naoto, goodbye...I-"_

"DAD!"

_SHUNK_

"Y-Yu!" Shinya cried in horror as his son jumped infront of him, his own blade piercing his body for the second time in that day

"Yu!" Chie cried out

"Senpai!" Kanji cried

"Hahaha!" Nyog'sothep laughed "He claimed to hate his father so much yet he sacrificed himself for him?!"

"Yu!" Shinya cried as he caught his son, now bleeding from two stab wounds "Y-You stupid, stupid boy! W-Why did you..."

"Yu!" Chie screamed as she ran over "O-Oh god, please no! Yukiko!"

"On it!" Yukiko cried as she summoned Amaterasu to heal the wound

"He'll bleed to death before you can heal him" Nyog'sothep chuckled

"Teddie, you bastard!" Yosuke cursed "H-How could you do this to us?! After all we've been through?! What about finding out who you were?! What about Nanako?!"

"I always knew who I was...as for the little brat, I couldn't care less" Nyog'sothep shrugged

"Stop the bleeding!" Kanji shouted as blood poured from Yu

"I'm trying!" Yukiko screamed

"Oh no...p-please..." Naoto whimpered

"D-Don't go..." Chie sobbed as she held Yu's hand "Don't leave me Yu..."

"Damn it..." Akihiko cursed

"This is all highly amusing" Nyarlathotep laughed as he powered up one more blast "But I'm afraid I'm going to kill you all right here and n-"

The words that were coming from his brain to his mouth were halted and forgetten about as a small being flew into his view

A blue butterfly

"No! No! Nononononono!" Nyarlathotep cried "You stay out of this!"

"Master?!" Nyog'sothep cried

"Stay out of th-" Nyarlathotep began to shout, but as the butterfly flew, time froze

And the group before him was gone

"T-The hell?!" Sho cursed

"Damn it! Damn it!" Nyarlathtep screamed to the heavens "DAMN YOU PHILEMON!"

* * *

"W-What the hell?" Kanji muttered

"H-Hey, I'm okay!" Yosuke cried

"All of my wounds are gone..." Junpei muttered

"Y-Yu!" Chie cried out as the boy sat up

"H-Huh?" Yu questioned "I'm okay?"

"Yu!" Chie sobbed as she wrapped him in a hug

"W-Where are we?" Labrys asked

"This place..." Katsuya mumbled as he observed the area, the top of a tower with a checkerboard floor with several pillars, with a view of the cosmos "It couldn't be..."

"Welcome"

Everyone's attention was then grasped by the owner of the voice. A tall man in a white suit, a white mask with a butterfly marking on it, with his hair tied back in a ponytail

"P-Philemon..." Katsuya gasped

* * *

"What now Master?" Nyogsothep asked

"It seems we will have to deal with them later...due to that interfering Philemon..." Nyarlathotep growled "Very well then...I have my next target in sight. This boy whose body I possess...I sense he was given a power"

"Indeed" Nyog'sothep nodded "He possesses the wild card ability, granted to him by that fragment of Philemon, Igor"

"How...amusing" Nyarlathotep smiled "Since he has the ability to enter the Velvet Room...it appears I now the ability to visit that place I could never enter"

"Sir, do you mean..." Nyog'sothep nodded

"Indeed" Nyarlathotep told him "It's time to pay a visit to Igor..."

* * *

"Ah, greetings Katsuya, It has been a long time my friend"

"Philemon, it really is you..." Katsuya muttered

"Who?" Kanji asked

"So you're Philemon..." Mitsuru said to him "Katsuya told me all about you"

"Where is this place...?" Rise questioned

"This is the realm between consciousness and unconsciousness" Philemon stated "It is here where I reside...and it is here where I have summoned you

"So what? This is like another dimension or something?" Kanji questioned

"Yes" Philemon nodded "That is exactly what it is"

"Philemon...you're...back?" Katsuya asked

"Indeed..." Philemon nodded "After you took care of Nyarlathotep, I took the role of an observer, preferring to watch those who found their own path. However, I could no longer take that role and had to interfere due to Nyarlathotep's return"

"This...Nyarlathotep" Yu muttered "Who...what is he?"

"Nyarlathotep is the embodiment of darkness, the side of humanity that wishes nothing but death and destruction, he is the very defination of hate" Philemon explained to him "And unbeknownst to I, he had been planning his resurrection for the last 11 years..."

"Philemon...was it?" Akihiko questioned "If this Nyarlathotep guy is the darkness of the world, then you're the light? You're clearly not a normal guy"

"Indeed" Philemon nodded "I am represent the good, the light...I am Philemon, the creator of Persona"

"C-Creator?" Yosuke yelped

"Indeed...well, perhaps _create _is the wrong word, long ago, I gave humans the power to call forth their inner-selves within them and battle alongside them. Many throughout history have been granted this gift, Joan of Arc, George Washington, Marco Polo, Oda Nobunaga, William Wallace, Blackbeard, Leonardo Da Vinci, Billy the Kid, Simon Belmont, Raidou Kuzunoha, they but a few who have possessed the wild card"

"Wait did you say Raidou Kuzunoha?" Yu questioned "My...grandfather? And Simon Belmont, my ancestor?"

"I see...so you are Raidou's grandson, as well a descendant of the Belmonts" Philemon hummed "Then it is fortunate that you were the chosen"

"What do you mean?" Yu questioned

"Long ago, on the first day you came to this town, you came into contact with Nyarlathotep's fragment, correct?"

"Y-Yeah" Yu nodded

"Then that night...you must have had a strange dream" Philemon said to him "Do you recall it?"

"Vaguely..." Yu grumbled "I remember walking down a foggy corridor, walking through a door and then running into _something_..."

_"Now...then...I have granted you the power...become the true vessel"_

"I-I didn't even remember than until now!" Yu gasped

"That was Nyarlathotep's fragment making contact with you" Philemon said "He implanted a small piece of his power within you, it was that which caused me to finally intervene..."

_"Greeting young one..."_

_"W-Who are you?"_

_"That is not important for now...may you tell me your name?"_

_"It's...Yu...Yu Narukami"_

_"I see, not many can recall their names within this place, I respect your strong will and for that, I grant you this power. Persona..."_

"Y-You!" Yu cried "You gave me my Persona..."

"Indeed" Philemon nodded "Sensing that Nyarlathotep's power had also been given to Naoki Konishi, I contacted him too and granted him the Persona Izanami..."

"You what!?" Yosuke cried "Y-You bastard! It's because of that that Saki-Senpai is dead!"

"Yosuke-senpai!" Rise tried to back him off

"Persona is my power...Naoki Konishi had Nyarlathotep's power, one is needed to access this world within the TV" Philemon stated "Even if I had not granted him a Persona, he would have been able to access that realm either way"

"S-So what is the TV world?" Chie questioned

"It is a realm created by Nyarlathotep's fragment, Nyog'sothep" Philemon told them "It is another realm similar to his one, it too exists within dimensions"

"So Ted...Nyog...sot...whatever it was, created a whole other dimension?" Kanji asked

"That would be it, yes" Philemon nodded

"Teddie..." Yukiko muttered

"You heard what he said..." Yosuke growled "_Teddie never existed_...that bastard was just using us this whole time"

"Bastard..." Chie cursed

"I had reserved myself to simply watch how this would unfold, but seeing that Nyarlathotep had finally returned and was about to end your lives, I broke my long standing rule of only observing and brought you here"

"So...what do we do now?" Yukari questioned

"Within these children still lays vast potential..." Philemon stated "Allow me to bring it forth"

"What are you-" Yosuke began to mutter before his Persona, along with several of the other's appeared and transformed

**Yosuke's Susano-o has become Takehaya Susano-o!**

**Chie's Suzuka-Gongen has become Haraedo-no-Okami!**

**Yukiko's Amaterasu has become Sumeo-Okami!**

**Kanji's Rokuten-Maoh has become Takeji Zaiten!**

**Rise's Kanzeon has become Kouzeon!**

**Naoto's Yamato-Takeru has become Amatsu Mikaboshi!**

**Daisuke's Ryujin has become Aji-Suki-Taka-Hikone!**

**Yumi's Hoderi-no-Mikoto had become Nigini-no-Mikoto!**

"M-My Persona transformed again!" Yosuke gaped

"N-No way!" Chie gaped

"Well that's no fair..." Junpei pouted "We've been doing this longer, how come we didn't get fancy new Persona's?"

"To those whose Persona I did not evolve, I sense more must be done to evolve your power" Philemon stated "More must be done for you...but I must big you farewell for now"

"W-Wait!" Labrys cried out

"I can only keep you here for a minuet amount of time" Philemon stated "I must now return you to the real world, I shall leave you at the entrance of the TV World...but I should warn you, your wounds do not exist here to due to it being on a different plane, once you return, your wounds will return"

"B-But Yu was bleeding to death!" Daisuke cried

"I am sorry..." Philemon apologised "This is all I can do...farewell..."

* * *

"A simple doorway...how humble" Nyarlathotep scoffed

"We're afraid the doorway is as far as you will go..." A male voice stated

"Hmm?" Nyarlathotep hummed as he turned to the source of the voice, finding three figures "I don't believe I've had the pleasure..."

"Theodore..." He introduced

"Margaret" The woman to side stated

"And I am the Grand ElizaDEATH" The other woman said "Also known as Elizabeth"

"I see...servents of the Velvet Room...fragments of Philemon" Nyarlathotep glared "Very well then, If I must kill you before Igor then so be it"

"You speak of killing our master, do not believe it will be so easy" Margaret stated "Come, Thanatos!"

"Thanatos!" Theodore and Elizabeth called out in unison

"Three Identical Persona's?" Nyarlathotep questioned "Th-Ugh!"

"Talking is not a free action I'm afraid..." Theodore said as his Thanatos smacked into Nyarlathtotep, blasting him back off the floor and into the vast cosmos that was the current Velvet Room.

"Looking somewhere?" Margaret questioned as he Thantos slashed Nyarlathotep wide open, blasting him back even more

"Is that all?!" Nyarlathotep spat "I-"

"Go back the abyss for wence you came" Elizabeth told him as her Thanatos smashed Nyarlathotep down into the cosmos "And reflect upon your life..."

...

BOOM!

"Sister!" Theodore cried as a torrent of fire blazed up, barely missing Elizabeth, Nyarlathotep arising from the flame

"I see..." Elizabeth hummed "It appears I have no choice but to make your life forfeit"

"Is that so..." Nyarlathotep snarked as the black ooze radiating off his arm shaped into a blade "You seem almost gleeful about this"

"Really?" Elizabeth giggled

_CHINK_

"What?!" Nyarlathotep cried as a chain from Thanatos wrapped around his arm

"You are a pathetic fraction of what you once were, Crawling Chaos!" Theodore spat as a chain from his Thanatos wrapped around Nyarlathotep's other arm "To have to possess the body of a mere child simply to have a physical form"

"It _is _pathetic" Margaret stated as he Thanatos wrapped a long chain around Nyarlathotep's body, completely covering him "Now begone once more Nyarlathotep..."

"**FINAL SEALING!**" The siblings shouted in unison as a coffin began to materialize around the chains

...

"Ha...hahahahahHAHAHAHAHA**HAHAHAHAHAHA!**"

_BOOM_

"W-What?!" Margaret cried as the chains and coffin bew apart, revealing a smiling Nyarlathotep

"To think I could come this far without even using an ounce of my power..." Nyarlathotep laughed "Now then...I believe this boy has some interesting powers...one called...**World's End**, I believe..."

_BOOM_

The sound blasted throughout the void, the siblings bodies ripped asunder by the attack

"Well, that hardly took any effort at all..." Nyarlathotep laughed as he proceeded onwards into the Velvet Room, until he found his target "Hello Igor..."

"So...we meet once more" Igor hummed

"This will be the last time I'm afraid" Nyarlathotep smirked

"So it seems...I feel you should know that killing me will not mark the end" Igor stated

"I am well aware" Nyarlathotep smiled as he held up his hand, energy surging within his palm "But killing you is the next best thing to killing Philemon...goodbye Igor"

* * *

"Uhh..."

Forcing his eyes open, they faced a pale blue ceiling with a small chandelier, darting his eyes to his side, they met with a window facing out a street he did not recognize

Yu Narukami stared blankly out of it before trying to push himself up, but a force held him down. He looked down and spotted an arm draped over him, looking over, he saw a sound asleep Chie, sitting down and leaning over on her bed, tears still evident on her cheeks

"Chie..." Yu weakly rasped

"Mmm..." The girl groaned in her sleep

"Chie..." He tried to prod her awake, noticing the IV's in his arm "Wake up..."

"Ugh..." Chie groaned

"Chie..." Yu rasped once more as the girl finally opened her eyes

"Unn..." Chie groaned as she sat up, rubbing her eyes and then finally noticed that Yu was looking straight at her "Y-Yu! You're awake!"

"Chi-" Yu began to question but the girl wrapped him in a bone crunching hug

"Thank god! Thank god!" Chie sobbed "You're still here!"

"W-What is going on?" Yu asked "Where am I?"

"He's awake!" Chie shouted out to the hall

"Seriously?!" Yosuke shouted as he dashed in, soon followed by the rest of the the group "B-Bro!"

"Senpai!" Kanji cheered happily

"Oh thank god, he's alive..." Naoto whimpered as she quietly cried

"Hey buddy..." Came an adult voice

"U-Uncle Dojima?" Yu questioned and then noticed the little girl at the bottom of his feet "Nanako?"

"Big Bro, you're okay!"

"I wouldn't go that far..." Motoko said as she stepped into the room

"M-Mom?"

"Oh my baby boy..." Motoko whispered as she wrapped her son in a hug

"What's going on?" Yu weakly asked "Where am I?"

"You're in one of my family homes" Mitsuru stated as she stepped into the room "We got you medical attention right away but we flew you and your family out here for the finest doctors the Kirijo Group can offer..."

"How..." Yu began to ask but then recalled that Nyarlathotep stabbed him with his own blade

"You've been out quite sometime..." Rise told him

"You've been out for two weeks" Dojima stated "It's December 20..."

"It is?!" Yu cried before he coughed in pain

"Easy, easy" Chie eased him down

"Chie-senpai hasn't left your sight once..." Kanji told him

"Seriously, when she did have to leave for whatever reason, she made me watch you instead" Yosuke said

"I'm just glad you're awake" Chie smiled with tears in her eyes

"I'm okay now" Yu smiled

"No you are not" Mitsuru hummed "You lost a lot of blood...enough to land you in a 2 week coma...you've been hooked up to life support for every moment since you've been stabbed, even on the plane"

"Plane?" Yu questioned

"I did say we flew you out" Mitsuru nodded "We transported you, your friends and family out here for the best medical treatment available"

"You can imagine my surprise when they told me that I was being transferred to a private hospital in France"

"F-France?!" Yu cried

"That's right" Mitsuru nodded as he looked out the window "Welcome to Paris, Yu Narukami"

* * *

"Ugh...ahhhh!"

"Hey what's wrong?" His companion asked

"I...I..."

"What's wrong?" He asked

"I-It's nothing Jun...I...I...Argh!"

"Tatsuya?!"

...

"My...memories have returned" Tatsuya Suou muttered

* * *

I really have to apologize for the wait of such a short chapter, my laptop freaked the fuck out to the point where I had to take it to get it repaired. Sorry guys, but it's fixed now so all should be good

The chapter title; Elegia is the latin word for Elegy. It's also a kick-ass song by New Order that was used in the latest Metal Gear Solid V trailer


	27. Christmas in Paris

**CHRISTMAS IN PARIS**

"W-What the hell am I doing in France!?" Yu cried

"Easy, you'll open up your wounds again" Mitsuru stated

"Believe me bro, we were all stunned when we were told where we were going" Yosuke said with a scratch of his head

"We were roped away almost immediately" Yukiko stated "We were told to go home, pick up a few things and wait for a limo..."

"We didn't even get to say goodbye to our parents" Chie said

"As I told you, that has been taken care of" Mitsuru told them "They've all received messages explaining your situation"

"Yeah, like they'll believe 'em" Kanji scoffed

"Y-You said I was out for two weeks...then..." Yu tried to speak "What happened to Nyarlathotep"

"Nyarlathotep was already gone once we returned to the material world" Mitsuru said "We searched all over Inaba but we were unable to locate him, we have eyes all over the country looking for him"

...

"Will that be enough?" Yu asked

"I don't know..." Mitsuru sighed "But it's all I can do for now..."

...

"We should continue this another time" A nurse said as she entered the room "Yu-kun needs his rest"

"Seriously? He's been asleep for two weeks" Yosuke laughed "But okay, sure"

"We'll see you soon Senpai" Kanji waved

"Get better soon" Dojima said

"Bye Big Bro" Nanako smiled

"You get better ASAP, you got it?" Motoko him as she kissed her son on the forehead before she and the group departed

Save for one

"You should get some rest too..." Yu said to Chie "You look like you haven't slept in weeks"

"I won't" Chie told him as she wiped her eyes "This the first time I've seen you awake in two weeks, I thought you were dead, I'm not leaving you..."

...

"Come on..." Yu said as he took her hand and led onto the bed, laying her atop of him, her head resting directly over his heart "Fall asleep right here..."

By the time he had finished the sentence, the girl was already fast asleep

"I'm not going anywhere..." Yu stated as he wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head before he too began to drift off to sleep

* * *

"Thank goodness he finally woke up..." Yukiko sighed

"I'm so glad..." Naoto stated with a sniff

"Come on, you've been a wreck these last two weeks..." Kanji sighed "He's okay now, he's awake"

"But you heard Mitsuru-san" Rise added "It's not like he's out of the clear"

"Ugh, let's not bring this down" Labrys sighed "Yu-kun's alive, that's what's important"

"She's right" Yumi nodded "That's all that's important right now..."

...

"We need to find a way to get down this hall without passing this room" Kanji spat as they walked past a certain door

"It's okay..." Naoto muttered "It doesn't matter to me that he's here"

"You sure?" Daisuke asked

"Yes..." Naoto nodded as she walked on

Noting the group had passed by, Mitsuru quietly slipped into the room

"How are you feeling Shinya?" She questioned

"Why did you take me too?" He asked as he stared out a window "Why?"

"You're asking me why I saved a human life?" Mitsuru questioned "You were forced into that position by Nyog'sothep and Sho Minazuki"

"I'm sure Motoko and Yu will tell you I've done far more..." Shinya muttered "I was fully prepared to die before my son saved me..."

"Your son _did _save you" Mitsuru said to him "Thank about that for a while..."

**DECEMBER 21**

"Mitsuru-san told us everything..." Motoko said to Yu, sitting in his room beside Nanako and Dojima "The TV World, Persona's..."

"You're like a superhero Big Bro!" Nanako cheered

"I wouldn't go that far..." Yu chuckled

"They said you'll be up on your feet in just a few days" Dojima smiled "'Bout time for you get out of bed"

"I got stabbed..._twice_" Yu scoffed "Pity me..."

...

"Big Bro, why didn't Teddie come with us?"

"Huh?"

"Teddie, why isn't he here with us?" Nanako repeated

"Nanako, sweetie..." Motoko sighed, Nanako was the only one not informed of Teddie's true nature

"Teddie...had to go away" Yu said to her

"But he promised to play with me..." Nanako pouted

"He...it was really sudden" Yu said to her "He went back home...back to the place where he belonged"

"I wonder if I'll ever see him again..." Nanako muttered

"He said...he'd miss you" Yu lied "That he was sorry he had to go..."

"Teddie..." Nanako whimpered

**INABA**

_RRRRRRRRIIIIIINNNGGGG_

"What now?" Katsuya sighed as he picked up the phone, raising an eyebrow when he saw the called I.D. "What does he want?"

_CLICK_

"Hello?"

_"K-Katsuya!"_

"Tatsuya? What's wrong?" Katsuya asked his brother

_"I-I remember!" Tatsuya cried "I remember everything!"_

"B-Back up..." Katsuya muttered "What's wrong?"

_"I don't know why..." Tatsuya panted "But...I remember it all! Persona, Joker, Eikichi, Ginko, Maya, Philemon, Nyarlathotep, The Masked Circle, I-I remember it all!"_

"T-That can't be possible!" Katsuya gaped

_"H-How can this be?" Tatsuya questioned "I mean...it was keeping my memories that threatened to tear the world apart in the first place!"_

"This makes no sense..." Katsuya mutterd "Unless...his return has somehow brought about this..."

_"Who's return? W-Wait, are you saying he's back!?"_

"Tatsuya, this is important" Katsuya said "Get to Yaso-Inaba right now, we need to talk"

**DECEMBER 22/ THE LOURVE MUSEUM**

"It's amazing isn't it?" Naoto gaped as she stood among the crowd, gazing at the painting

...

"It's a painting" Kanji shrugged

"Not just a painting!" Naoto said "It's the Mona Lisa!"

"It's a painting of a chick then" Kanji shrugged again

"Kanji-kun, it is perhaps the most famous and valuable painting in the world, it's more than _some chick_!" Naoto groaned "I swear, you have no taste for the arts..."

"Hey, my family runs a textile shop, y'know!" Kanji yelled

"Keep your voice down, this is a museum!" Naoto shushed him "Ugh, I should have known this place wasn't suited to your tastes...you can just go"

...

"Sorry...I know you really wanted to visit this place and you invited me here and everything..." Kanji sighed "Hey, let's go see that Venus Demelo chick, she's here right?"

"It's...Venus de Milo...and yes, she is" Naoto nodded before letting out a small giggle "Let's go..."

...

"She's the armless chick with the knockers out, right?" Kanji asked

"Y-Yes..." Naoto gulped

"H-Hey, what's this one?" Kanji asked as the passed a statue of an angel holding a woman

"Oh, this is _Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss_" Naoto explained "You see, the woman, Psyche is reaching up to her lover, Cupid..."

"They ain't wearin' any clothes..." Kanji noted "Man, these old artists really enjoyed nudity..."

"I-I imagine it's easier to sculpt that way..." Naoto blushed

...

"We're getting a lot of stares..." Kanji noted

"Well, we are two Japanese teenagers in the middle of a French museum" Naoto stated "Not to mention..."

"I look like a thug..." Kanji sighed as he spoke the words Naoto did not want to

"T-They're wrong..." Naoto told him "I know you Kanji-kun, you're not like that, you're a kind person..."

"Y-Yeah..." Kanji muttered as his cheeks tinted red "L-Look, I'm just causing trouble here, I'll just go-"

"Don't go...I enjoy your company..." Naoto said as she grasped his arm "Who cares what these people think?"

"R-Really?" Kanji gulped "U-Uh sure, I'll stay"

"Okay..." Naoto smiled "Now come on, let's go down to the Venus de Milo already"

**CAFE**

"Excusez-moi monsieur, moi et mon ami voudrais deux thés et muffin aux bleuets s'il vous plaît" Yukiko asked

"Ve faire, madame" The man behind the counter nodded

...

Yosuke could only stare in awe

"Y-Yukiko, when did you learn how to speak French?" Yosuke asked

"Oh, I don't, but I learned some key phrases on the flight over" Yukiko smiled "Though I'm not sure if I used the masculine or femine pronouns..."

"Voici" The clerk said as he placed two teas and a blueberry muffin on the table

"Ah, merci" Yukiko thanked

"Well...thanks for inviting me here..." Yosuke smiled before taking a sip of the tea

"Well...we never did get to go on that date" Yukiko smiled, causing Yosuke to choke on his tea

"No...no we did not" Yosuke said between coughs as Yukiko giggled

"Are you okay?" She asked

"I'm fine..." Yosuke nodded "It's just...you didn't bring up for the last two weeks, I know we've all been worried about Yu but I figured you had changed your mind"

"O-Oh, I wouldn't do that!" Yukiko gasped "I mean, if I was going to reject you, I would be blunt about it!"

"T-Thanks?" Yosuke muttered as he raised an eyebrow

"I've been thinking a lot..." Yukiko said as she took a sip of her tea "About us..."

"Oh..." Yosuke gulped

"Last year, I didn't even really know you" Yukiko said "I didn't really have any friends besides Chie before Yu-kun came along and he became my friend, then you, Kou-kun, Daisuke-kun and the others too...but Yu-kun was special, I fell in love with him, but he fell in love with Chie. I didn't have a chance when that happened...and despite saying that I was okay with them, I was so jealous of Chie, because she ended up with the most wonderful man in the world, the man who I wanted...

But now I don't feel that way, I'm happy for them, I can tell just how much they love each other. I got over Yu-kun...and now afterwards, I sunk back, my feelings about Yu-kun were forgotten and I forgot how it felt like to love someone...but when you told me...you had feelings for me, I got this strange feeling inside of me...and on that day when we went into the TV to find Naoki, I realised...just how hurt I would be if you fell in love with someone else"

"Yukiko..." Yosuke muttered

"How much it would hurt...and then I realised something, that it was the same feeling I got when I found out Yu-kun didn't love me, but it felt stronger" Yukiko said "I realized it...so Yosuke Hanamura, even if you're still confused and don't know how you feel about me..._I _am in love with _you_"

Yosuke's jaw hung agape at those words as his eyes began to sting

...

"Y'know..." Yosuke mumbled as he dipped his head down "For a long time...I wanted to hear those words so bad, from Saki..."

"O-Oh..."

"H-Hang on, I'm going somewhere with this" Yosuke assured her "When Saki died...I couldn't see myself with any other girl. The only other girls in my life were Chie, and who knows maybe something could have happened there if Yu hadn't shown up, and then there was you...every guy liked you, _I _liked you...I asked you out, you rejected me, I was kinda upset but whatever...then Ayane came along, she...she was in love with me but quite frankly, I didn't know the first thing about her. I turned her down and before I knew it, she was targetted and thrown in the TV world. Two girls...one who I loved and one who loved me, ended up dead and in a coma. So...when I realized I had fallen for you...I was scared.

Hell, I'm still scared...I was worried that something even worse would happen to you since I'm practically cursed when it comes to girls...but I know you, something like that wouldn't stop you...you have something they didn't...power. So even though I'm scared, I know I shouldn't be...so yeah, I can say this with no regrets now...I love you Yukiko-sa-"

The end of his confession was cut off as the girl practically leapt over the table and placed her lips to his

Breaths hushed and their blood warmed as they moved their lips against each other. They would have continued had it not been for an angry French woman yelling at them

"What did she say?" Yosuke questioned as they broke apart

"She told us to get a room" Yukiko giggled

**DECEMBER 23/ ROOF OF KIRIJO HOME**

"This isn't so bad..." Adachi hummed as he sat on the patio chair, beer in his hand "Clear skies, crisp French beer..."

"Plenty of places to smoke" Dojima hummed as he blew the smoke out of his mouth "It's France alright...though I really wish we were here under better circumstances..."

"Yeah...would be nice if this was a paid vacation or something" Adachi sighed as he took of a swig of the beer

"Let's not beat around the bush, we're here because Yu almost died and only these French doctors could save him" Dojima said

"Yeah..." Adachi muttered

"Is it true?" Dojima questioned "That he jumped infront of a stab meant for Shinya?"

"Y-Yeah" Adachi admitted

"So after all this time..." Dojima sighed "Can't blame the kid for not wanting his dad to die, but to jump in front of the blade like that..."

"He's a strong kid...didn't even hesitate" Adachi claimed "But at the same time, he almost got himself killed..."

"Doesn't even know his dad is here, does he?" Dojima asked

"I don't think so, no..." Adachi sighed

"Maybe we should keep it that way..." Dojima groaned "At least until he's better..."

"Yeah..." Adachi nodded before taking another sip of his beer

* * *

"Hello Brother" Katsuya greeted as he shook Tatsuya's hand

"Katsuya" Tatsuya nodded as the two took a seat at the cafe in Okina City

"So...your memories are back?" Katsuya questioned, getting straight to the point

"Yeah..." Tatsuya nodded "Everything...even my Persona, Apollo..."

"How can this be..." Katsuya muttered "Your memories were erased to prevent this world and the old reality merging with one another and wiping out reality...if they are back..."

"I know, I know" Tatsuya sighed "Even though they came back, nothing bad has happened...Jun doesn't remember a thing either...I don't understand, what's going on?"

"It no doubt has something to do with Nyarlathotep's return" Katsuya sighed "But how?"

"Maybe...who am I kidding, I don't even know" Tatsuya groaned "His return brought back my memories...but how?"

**DECEMBER 24/ CHRISTMAS EVE**

"H-Hey, what are you doing?!" Chie cried as she entered the room, witnessing Yu walking across the floor "You shouldn't be up!

"It's fine" Yu told her "I'm just going to take a shower"

"S-Should I get a nurse?" Chie asked

"It's fine, I can get to the bathroom fine..." Yu chuckled as he walked towards the bathroom, causing Chie to yelp, he was confused until he realized that he was wearing a blue hospital robe, with the back open "Oh relax, it's not like you haven't seen it before..."

"Shut up!" Chie snapped as Yu laughed before he clutched his chest "H-Hey!"

"It's fine" Yu told her but she ran up to him anyway "I'm not bleeding..."

"I don't believe you..." Chie told him "Let me see"

"Do you see any blood?" Yu asked

"Let me see" Chie repeated

...

Sighing, Yu slipped off the top part of the robe, keeping hold of it to make sure it didn't fall off all the way, exposing the large scar from the cut

"That scar's only temporary..." Yu told her "It's healed Chie...it's fine"

...

"I don't believe you" Chie glared

"I'm fine...not 100% sure, but I'm fi-"

_SMACK_

"NO YOU AREN'T!" Chie screamed as her palm striked against his cheek "You almost died! Don't you get it?! For the last few weeks, I couldn't sleep because I was afraid you were going to die everytime I closed my eyes...you're not fine...I'm not fine...I almost lost you damn it! The most important thing in my life! For the last two weeks I've been in hell and you're just laughing it off?! You god damn fucking..."

...

"I'm sorry..." Yu apologized "I didn't mean it like that...when...when I was stabbed, my thoughts weren't of dad...my mind went straight to you and how that if I died here then there would be so many things I would regret never doing with you, never making love to you, never marrying you, never having a family with you...the reason I was just smiling? It's because despite everything, I still have the power to do all those things...that I'm still here. As long as you're here with me, I can't help but smile...I love you more than anything in this world, so if I say I'm fine...it's because I'm still alive...it's because I can still open my eyes and see you. It's because I love you more than life itself..."

...

"You're an idiot...a stupid, stupid idiot" Chie growled as tears ran down her cheeks and without another word, Yu grabbed her into a hug

"Yeah...I am" Yu said as he and Chie fell to their knees "I'm dumb as fuck for ever upsetting you...will you ever forgive me?"

"Dumbass..." She sobbed "S-Stop being so sweet, I'm pissed at you!"

"Sorry..." Yu smiled as he kissed her on top of her head "I'm sorry..."

* * *

"France is a big place..." Daisuke whispered as he and Yumi trod through the snow that had fallen on the streets the previous night

"It's so cold..." Yumi said as she breathed on her hands

"Here"

"H-Huh?!" Yumi gasped as Daisuke slipped the gloves he was wearing onto her hands "W-Wait, what about you?"

"I'll be fine..." Daisuke smiled as she stuffed his hands in his pockets "You're the one here, wearing the skirt..."

"H-Hey!" Yumi blushed

"I ain't swapping my pants" Daisuke chuckled

...

"W-What is this stuff?" Labrys questioned as she trod through the snow "It's...so cold"

"Don't you know? Oh, I...suppose you wouldn't" Daisuke muttered "It's snow"

"Snow..." Labrys muttered, remembering the dog she had meant in her time spent at the lab "So that's why they called 'im Snowy..."

"Huh?" Yumi questioned

"I-It's nothin'..." Labrys stated

* * *

"This will be the first christmas I spend away from family..." Yukiko muttered

"Really?" Rise questioned "I'm used to being alone...I always work on Christmas"

"S-Seriously?" Yosuke stuttered

"That's messed up" Kanji stated

"Not really" Rise shrugged "Some TV show always pulls me in a special Christmas episode, I'm used to it, come to think of it, this will be the first thing I've had resembling a day off on Christmas..."

"Man, that's lame..." Chie groaned

"Well...I wish your first christmas off was under better circumstances..." Daisuke sighed "But...hey, we're all here, so it ain't all bad"

"Yeah..." Rise smiled "I'm really glad...I'm spending Christmas with you guys"

**DECEMBER 25/ CHRISTMAS DAY**

"It's Christmas!" Nanako cheered as she ran down the hall

"Take it easy..." Dojima sighed "You know we left all your presents back in Inaba right?"

"Aww..." Nanako pouted

"So...Christmas in Paris..." Daisuke chuckled "This is a first...

...

It's the first Christmas I can remember without Kou..."

...

"Are you okay, Daisuke-san?" Yumi questioned

"Yeah...just...miss my buddy, that's all" Daisuke sighed

"W-Will you be okay?" Yumi asked

"Yeah..." Daisuke nodded "Yeah..."

* * *

_CREAK_

"What is it now, Mitsuru-san?" Shinya sighed as his door was opened

"Hello Shinya..."

"M-Motoko!" Shinya gasped as he turned to the woman

"It's been a while since I've seen your face" Motoko noted "You look so old now, you're greying..."

"Well...I've been under a lot of street lately..." Shinya said with a slight chuckle "Why...why are you here Motoko?"

...

"I just want to know why..." Motoko said "All those years ago...why did you cheat on me?"

...

"I was stupid...I thought Yu's birth meant my life was over" Shinya stated "I was an idiot, trying to recapture my youth. So I went down to bar and slept with the first woman who would drop her pants..."

"And that was Naoto-chan's mother..." Motoko muttered "But...the way she spoke about you in the letter...she cared for you"

"I won't lie, I cared for her too..." Shinya admitted "I won't lie here and say It meant nothing...I was an idiot who thought one woman wasn't enough...I...I..."

"How do you feel about Naoto-chan?" Motoko asked

"She's my daughter..." Shinya muttered

"I see..." Motoko nodded as she walked over to him, stopping right before him

_SMOOCH_

"M-Motoko..." Shinya gasped as his wife planted a kiss on his forehead

"Merry Christmas Shinya..." Motoko said before she walked away

* * *

"Hey, Merry Christmas Bro!" Yosuke laughed as he wrapped Yu in a hug

"Hey there, Merry Christmas" Yu smiled as he returned the hug

"Great to see you back on your feet Senpai..." Kanji grinned as he shook Yu's hand "Merry Christmas bud"

"Merry Christmas Chie" Yukiko smiled as she wrapped her friend in a hug

"Merry Christmas Naoto..." Motoko smiled as she wrapped her step-daughter in a hug

"M-Merry Christmas..." Naoto muttered in shock before she was hugged from behind too "Y-Yu?!"

"Merry Christmas sis..." Yu smiled

"M...Merry Christmas" Naoto laughed

"Merry Christmas Big Bro!" Nanao smiled as she joined in on the hug

"Hey you guys, get in here!" Adachi cried from the other room

"What's going on?" Dojima questioned as he opened the door "Whoa!"

"What the!?" Yosuke cried out as an entire feast was laid out before them on the long dining table

"Mitsuru-san's chefs dropped this off for us..." Adachi muttered

"Holy crap!" Chie shouted as she began to drool

"Wow..." Yu whistled

...

"This is so much..." Rise laughed

"I apologize..." Came the voice of Mitsuru from the doorway "I know you would all prefer to be spending Christmas back home with your families, this food is all I can do to ease that..."

"B-Believe me, this is more than enough..." Kanji gulped

"Well then, I'll be taking my leave" Mitsuru smiled

"Won't you be joining us Mitsuru-san...?" Motoko asked

"I'm afraid I have work to attend to" Mitsuru said to them "Farewell..."

...

"Hey, if you're not fast, you're last!" Chie cried as she sat around the table

"H-Hey, leave some for us!" Yosuke cried as the rest rushed to their seats

**LATER**

"Oh man..." Kanji muttered before letting out a burp

"Kanji-kun!" Yukiko scolded

"S-Sorry" He apologized

"I couldn't eat another thing if you paid me..." Yosuke gurgled

"I've never been so full..." Rise moaned

"Even I'm stuffed" Chie groaned

"Man, that hit the spot" Adachi laughed

...

"Geez, I might just fall asleep..." Daisuke groaned

...

"Hey...I have an idea" Yu said as he pushed himself up "Let's take a walk somewhere..."

"Huh?" Yosuke questioned "Where to?"

**EIFFEL TOWER/ TOP FLOOR**

"Wow..." Chie gasped in awe as he looked out over the view

"It's like I can see the whole world from here..." Kanji muttered

"The view is incredible..." Naoto said in awe

"It's so beautiful..." Yumi muttered as she looked to the snowing night sky

"It's so pretty..." Labrys smiled as she looked out

"We're so high up!" Nanako cried

"Man...I've been to Tokyo Tower, but this is nothing compared to that" Yosuke whistled

"It's amazing..." Yukiko uttered before she walked over and took his hand into her own "Even more amazing now that you're here..."

...

"It really is amazing, huh?" Yu smiled as he walked up to Chie, noticing something about what she was wearing "Is that...the scarf I made for your birthday?"

"Yeah..." Chie smiled as she clutched the red scarf "I made sure it was one of the things I took with me..."

...

"I can't think of a better place than here with you" Yu smiled at her as they held hands and looked out over Paris "Merry Christmas Chie Satonaka..."

"Merry Christmas Yu Narukami..." She smiled as she leaned her head on his shoulder

**KIRIJO SAFEHOUSE**

"Man..." Kanji chuckled "That view was amazing..."

"It's something I'll never forget" Naoto smiled "I am glad we experienced it"

"Yeah, me too..." Kanji nodded

"I'm glad we finally found something here to your tastes" Naoto chuckled

"I wasn't that picky at the museum, was I?" Kanji questioned

"No...no..." Naoto laughed

"Well...this is my room..." Kanji utterd "Goodn-"

"Is that..." Naoto noted something

"Huh?" Kanji questioned before he looked up and noticed something above his door

Mistletoe

"T-The hell did that come from!?" Kanji yelped

"O-Oh my...umm, Kanji-kun...I don't know if you know this, but..." Naoto gulped "T-Traditionally when two people stand under mistletoe, it's a symbol that they should..."

"I know what it means..." Kanji sighed

"I-It's a silly tradition" Naoto said "Just ignore i-"

"Nah" Kanji shrugged

"H-Huh?!" Naoto gasped

"It's...a tradition, ain't it?" Kanji asked as his cheeks tinted red "So...let's just...do it already!"

"O-Oh..." Naoto muttered before she took off her hat, revealing her blushing face "I-If you insist..."

"I...I don't wanna do anything you don't want to" Kanji muttered "It's cool if you don't want to, it's f-"

"N-No, it's okay" Naoto told him "Let's...let's just..."

"O-Okay..." Kanji nodded as he began to dip her head down

_"Don't fuck it up, don't fuck it up, don't fuck it up" He told himself_

Naoto proceed to close her eyes and lift her head slightly up as Kanji's head slowly glided towards hers

Until their lips made contact

Even though it was only a brief touch, it was enough to send a jolt through each of their bodies, causing them to practically bounce apart

"W-Well, now that that's done I'll be going now..." Naoto uttered as her face was completely red before she scampered away

"S-See ya..." Kanji uttered before he stepped into his room and closed his door behind him

And let out a deafening shout of;

"FUCK YEAH!

...

"Told you it would work" Yosuke laughed as he and Yukiko hid around the corner

* * *

"Chie..." Yu muttered as the pair arrived by the door "Can I tell you something?"

"Ofcourse..." She nodded before Yu went in close to her to whisper in her ear

"I'm love with you"

"I knew that" Chie giggled

"But after tonight...I love you more than ever...so much that I..." He whispered to her "I want you..."

...

"Then have me..." She said as she immediantly placed her lips to his and pushed her through the door

"Are you sure?" Yu asked between kisses as Chie slammed the door behind them

"Yeah..." Chie said "I...I...want you"

That was all the words he needed before he began to strip his lover, the two pulling each others clothes off until both stood there naked as the day they were born. Admiring the others naked bodies. they partaked in kissing each others body from head to toe, not leaving a single inch uncovered. They panted as they made love for the first times. Chie gasping in pleasure as Yu licked her breasts. Yu moaning as Chie grasped his manhood. Their breaths were white hot at they played with others bodies, each other bringing their lover to euphoria, until the two settled to truly become one. Chie yelped in pain as Yu pierced her womanhood for the first ever time, kissing her body over and over to null the pain. A smooth rhythm soon began between the two, bring both to orgasm before long. Yu making sure to pull out of her to avoid any unwarrenty

Both then embraced the other, pulling the covers over the other, kissing each other softly until they fell asleep in each others arms

**UNKNOWN LOCATION**

"So...at last" Nyarlathotep smiled "I finally found you...I had to search damn near the entire cosmos but I finally stand before you, even though you have been sealed away, I will once again grant you freedom and bring about the destruction you wished upon the world"

He proceeded to laugh even more, as he floated up and arose before the human-seal of his target

"Hello Nyx..."

* * *

If you're farmiliar with my other works, then you know that I'm no stranger to writing sex scenes, but given the tone of this story, I don't really feel a gratitous detailed rumpy pumpy scene was very appropiate


	28. Passing Strangers

**PASSING STRANGERS**

"Although I supposed you didn't truly _desire _it" Nyarlathotep hummed "But oh well, it'd be a shame to let that power of yours go to waste..."

A sinister smirk creeped upon his face as his outstretched palm hovered in front of the seal, his yellow eyes glowing as Nyx's power started to gravitate into him

Until...

"How far have you fallen, Crawling Chaos?"

"You..." Nyarlathotep sighed with a spit as twisted his head around to meet his nemesis

"To think that you would sink to this level" Philemon spoke, voice tinted in dryness "What happened to you?"

"What happened to me?" Nyarlathotep repeated "I was struck down by the Suou boy and Amano girl. they did quite a number on me, you should know, you were there..."

"Defeat hardly keeps you down for long" Philemon conveyed

"Yes well, that time was different, my powers were exhausted to the point where I had to fissure a fragment of myself to orchestrate a ressurrection" Nyarlathotep spat "Now that I have been reborn, my powers lack the vigor they once possessed..."

"So you reply upon the power of others..." Philemon concluded "How satirical that statement is...coming from you"

"No, no, I'm taking that power for myself..." Nyarlathotep grinned "I've been gone so long, this world owes me that much..."

"This world is in no way indebted to you" Philemon cut in

"I'll be the judge of that" Nyarlathotep smiled

"It's almost feeble..." Philemon scorned "For you to hunt down the power of others...instead of trying to reclaim your own"

"If I didn't know any better, I'd day you were trying to entail something Philemon" Nyarlathotep reckoned with a narrow glare "Wait, have you...oh...hahaha! You sly dog! _You _took my power didn't you?"

"In your last moment, you spoke of how you would always live as long as evil persisited..." Philemon quoted "Knowing this to be true, I robbed your very soul of its essence...the power within you. But sadly, I didn't take enough it seems, as you were able to spawn that fragment, Nyog'sothep"

"Impressive you could do such without me even being aware" Nyarlathotep appluaded "So where is it?"

"Far away from you" Philemon said coldly

"So...then may I ask what you're here for?" Nyarlathotep inquired "Are you here to stop me?"

"You know I cannot interfere with this material world" Philemon expressed

"Is that so?" Nyarlathotep questioned "You seemed more than happy to break that rule when it came to saving those children. Nyog'sothep also informed me you saved the life of a young brat related to the Narukami boy"

"Their lives were put in crisis by an act that should not have occured" Philemon stated

"So you only help in a sure-death situation?" Nyarlathotep asked with a raised eyebrow "I thought lurking in the shadows was supposed to be my thing..."

"Mock me as you will, I know that they will stop you" Philemon voiced

"So...the boy lives then?" Nyarlathotep chuckled "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised...I felt the blood of Kuzunoha within him, that Raidou fool gave me more than some trouble."

"Indeed...The blood of Belmont is there alongside it in his veins" Philemon told

"I knew smelled that foul stench within him" Nyarlathotep gurgled "That accursed boy Simon..."

"And just as they stopped you, so shall Yu Narukami" Philemon accounted

"You have immaculate faith in the boy, don't you?" Nyarlathotep scoffed "You truly believe he can stop me?"

"You are but a woeful imitation of your past self, he should have no trouble doing so" Philemon mocked

"Oh no no no...you see that's just it" Philemon chuckled "He's facing _me_..."

"Explain your meaning..." Philemon pressed

"You see...in the past, I minupulated, shaped and employed others to bring this world to ruin" Nyarlathotep smiled "But know, it's a one man show"

"Then explain Nyog'sothep and Sho Minazuki" Philemon demanded

"Nyog'sothep was to bring me back, the Minazuki boy was his idea and quite frankly, I couldn't care less for the child" Nyarlathotep uttered "Humanity has let me down in the past, I know now that I cannot rely on humans..and that is why this time, _I'm doing it myself_..."

...

"They will stop you..." Philemon uttered before fading away

"They will try" Nyarlathotep grinned before turning back to Nyx and once began to take in her power

**DECEMBER 26 2011**

Groaning as his eyes opened to the pale blue room with the white roof, they adjusted to the radiant light shining in from the window, he moved his head around on his pillow as he feel an oddly warm small gust of air on his neck. Peering down, his witness a small mop of light brown hair, fashioned into an adorable bowl cut, not nearly as adorable as the sleeping face of Chie Satonaka

Thank god, he thought he dreamed her

The girl snored quietly right next to his neck, her body laid on top of his, the bedsheet covering both of them being the closest thing either of them possessed to clothing as last night the two teenage lovers had given each other their bodies as a sign of their love for one another.

He admired her sleeping face, but that didn't last long as he eyelids began to twitch and peer open.

"Morning" Yu quietly smiled

"Morning..." She hummed with a small chuckle as she nuzzled into his neck "Last night was amazing..."

"Hell of a Christmas present, right?" Yu chuckled

"I'll say" Chie laughed as she began to climb up Yu's frame before stopping with a jolt "Ah!"

"You okay?" Yu asked with a hint of concern

"Yeah...just...still a little tender" Chie grumbled "You know...down there"

"Ah..." Yu noted "S...Sorry about that?"

"Don't apologize you dork" Chie giggled as he planted a small kiss on his chin

"Sorry" Yu chuckled, before realizing he had done just what she told him not to do "How about...to make for up for it..."

"Yeah?" Chie egged on

"How about Round #2?" Yu smiled

"Oh, up for some more?" Chie smiled seductively "I had no idea my boyfriend was such a..."

_GRIP_

"Ah!" Yu yelped as Chie wrapped her around a certain body part of his

"Passionate man..." Chie licked her lips

"Well, what can I say?..." Yu smiled as he guided his fingers down

_SLIP_

"Oh!" Chie moaned as Yu's fingers glided inside her

"A girl like you can make a guy go crazy" Yu smiled

"Don't you tease me..." Chie moaned into his ear

"Wouldn't dream of it..." Yu smiled before he flipped their positions over

"No, no" Chie laughed as she flipped them back over "I'm on top this time"

"Oh...I love you" Yu grinned

"I know" She smiled back

**CAFE, OKINA CITY**

"So...it still doesn't make any sense..." Katsuya cursed

"I know...I'm sorry I could help more" She sighed

"I apologize for dragging you all the way out here" Katsuya exhaled "Especially for nothing, and on Christmas of all days..."

"It's fine Katsuya..." She smiled "In all honesty, it was nice just to see you again"

"Yes...I wish we could have met under better circumstances" Tatsuya lamented "I've been meaning to ask how you were doing...it's been almost 10 years since I last saw you"

"Yeah...that long huh?" She pondered

"So how are you Tamaki?" Katsuya asked "How long have you and Tadashi been married now?"

"Married? That never went past the engagement" Tamaki scoffed "Do you know he only dated me because I looked like that idol Yuki Uchida?"

"Yeah...I did" Katsuya nodded

"Huh?!"

"We all did" Katsuya told her "We just didn't want to say anything...we're glad you came to your senses!"

"Well thank you very much" Tamaki scoffed "But still...why did you call me? There's a ton of other people you could have called"

"To be honest...it was a hunch" Katsuya admitted "You...worked with the Kuzunoha Devil Summoner Agency didn't you?"

"Still do" She nodded

"You see...right now, Nyatlathotep's main target is Raidou Kuzunoha's grandson, Yu Narukami" Katsuya explained

"What?!" Tamaki gasped

"I was sure it was all too big to be a coincidence" Katsuya sighed "But it looks like it was just that..."

"Raidou Kuzunoha the XIV...real name; Johei Kuzunoha" Tamaki muttered "When he retired, he went into hiding and legally changed his name to Raidou Dojima."

"And moved to the countryside, where he married a woman named Hitomi Tono..." Katsuya alleged

"I knew Raidou had children, it was ill-advised of me to assume his legacy didn't continue" Tamaki criticized herself "This Narukami boy...what's he like?"

"The boy has the natural aura of a leader, even when I didn't know him that well, I could just feel that he was someone I could trust" Katsuya explained "Just standing beside him...it was like back in the day with Maya..."

"He sounds like really something..." Tamaki whistled "Where is he right now?"

"France"

"Wha-" Tamaki choked

"He's in a safehouse, recovering from his wounds..." Katsuya explained "Far away from danger..."

"Perhaps that is for the best..." Tamaki sighed "I-"

"You..."

"Huh?" Katsuya questioned the new presence "Tatsuya, what are you doing here?"

"I-I don't know...something just told me to come here...like a hunch, y'know?" Tatsuya explained before turning to Tamaki "But you...I know you..."

"Hello Tatsuya Suou" Tamaki greeted as she stood up and shook his hand "My name is Tamaki Uchida, I'm a Devil Summoner"

"A what?" Tatsuya questioned

"It's a fancy word for Persona user..." Katsuya murmured

"Not quite..." Tamaki groaned

"Tamaki...you were a cat burglar weren't you?" Tatsuya inquired

"T-That was a long time ago" Tamaki voiced with a nervous laugh "Now I devote all of my time to the Kuzunoha Devil Summoner agency"

"So...do you know about-" Tatsuya began to quiz

"About Nyatlathotep's return? Sadly yes..." She sighed "I wish our reunion could be under better circumstances..."

"I just wish we could assist them" Katsuya groaned

"Well...the Kirijo group does owe the agency for quite a few favors..." Tamaki hummed as she pulled out her cellphone

"What're you-" Katsuya began to ask until Tamaki held her hand up as her phone rang

"Shouhei, it's me..." She smiled "Got a job for you..."

**KIRIJO SAFEHOUSE/ PARIS, FRANCE**

Splashing the cold water on his face, Yu sighed as the sweat evapperated off his skin. Rolling around with Chie got him sweatier than he'd ever been before. Exhaling through his nose, Yu looked up into the mirror, examining his long, stringy hair

"Maybe I should finally get it cut..." Yu sighed as he held his head under the tap, the cold water soaking directly into his scalp. It soon devolves in a wet silver mound on his head which he ran his hands through. He went to examine it in the mirror. Only to discover, once he opened his eyes, it was not there

Nor was the bathroom

Or anything really...

"What the hell..." Yu muttered as he looked out into empty space

"Greetings my friend..."

"That voice..." Yu groused as he twisted his head around, starting at the suit wearing figure "Philemon..."

"How are you my friend?" Philemon asked "Your wounds seem to be healed I see..."

"I suppose" Yu hummed before getting to the point "Why did you bring me here?"

"I come bearing unfortunate news sadly" Philemon sighed "I must inform you that Nyarlathotep grows stronger as we speak..."

"He-Where is he!?" Yu demanded

"I do not know..." Philemon groaned "His presence is well hidden..."

"So you brought me here just to tell me this?" Yu grumbled

"No...I also came to apologize" Philemon admitted "Nyarlathotep's new power is partially my own fault. He took the power Naoki Konishi's Persona; Izanami...a power I granted to him"

"I've been meaning to ask that...why did you give Naoki a Persona?" Yu asked "I mean...you yourself said that Naoki only needed Nyarlathotep's power to enter the TV World, so why give him a Persona?"

"It's my duty to believe in the good in humanity" Philemon explained "I gave both you and Naoki Konishi the power of Persona as I truly believed you would both choose the light I had imparted upon you rather than the darkness in your hearts left by Nyarlathotep"

"I did, Naoki didn't..." Yu grunted "You really think too much of people..."

"It is something I cannot help, I'm afraid..." Philemon sighed "But it worked with you, you following your heart and those around you led you to grow stronger than anticipated, that is why your arcana went from_ The Fool _to _The World_..."

"So that's it?" Yu questioned with a shrug "You brought me out all the way out here just to apologize?"

"I have made mistakes in the past, mistakes that I did not take responsibility for" Philemon admitted "I simply did not wish to make the same mistake again...I must depart now, but I must ask you one thing before I go"

"Yeah?"

"When you return to the material world. Utter the names; Margaret, Theodore and Elizabeth" Philemon requested

"Huh? Wh-"

Before he had even finished his question, his surroudings had returned to the bathroom of the safehouse

"Son of a..." Yu sighed before figuring he should fufill Philemon's request "Margaret, Theodore, Elizabeth..."

...

_"AHHHHH!"_

"Yu?!" A barely dressed Chie yelped as she heard his scream coming from the bathroom, without hesitation, she dashed in, spotting him on the floor, laid out

As three well dressed people in blue stood beside him

"T-The hell!?" Chie cursed

"Hello!" Theodore waved

* * *

_"That foolish bear...that blond, innocent, naive child...Teddie...was a farce. Teddie never existed"_

_"Teddie is no more...no, rather...Teddie never even existed to begin with"_

Those words echoed in Yosuke's head as he stared at himself in the mirror. Staring deep into his own reflection

_"All those times we had...the time we spent together. It all meant nothing to him..."_

Clenching his fist, he slammed his eyes shut as he bared his teeth, seething enmity clearly showcased in his expression.

_"You were excellent pawns Yosuke..." _Teddie, no, Nyog'sothep's voice ran through his ears. he opened his eyes, witnessing Nyog'sothep's figure that was in the place of his own reflection

_"Look at you...still grieving over losing a_ friend?" The image mocked _"It's a Phantom Pain, a twisted dream. Do you get it now? You do, don't you? Our friendship was never real...your wishes do not come true. You just cling on to your dreams, your phantoms...you want your hatred of me to replace the pain of losing another close to you, but it never goes away. All it does is wear a man down, inside and out"_

_SMASH_

Unable to take anymore, a furious Yosuke flung his fist forward, smashing the mirror into dozens of pieces, some falling to the floor, others staying within the frame. Staring deeply into his broken reflection. He utthered a promise to himself

"I'll find you, you bastard" He cursed "I swear it..."

* * *

"Sister?"

"Eh?" Labrys questioned as she heard an incoming voice, twisting her head around, she witnessed her younger sister Aigis approaching "Oh..."

"You seem troubled" Aigis stated as she joined her sister on the balcony overlooking the cold Paris morning

"Jus' thinkin'..." Labrys sighed

"May I ask what about?" Aigis asked

"All of it" Labrys sighed again "All ma' life, I just wanted to be a normal girl...now I'm getting ready ta' fight some kinda shape shifting god...'bout as far away from normal as you can get"

"Do you find your existence unsatisfactory?" Aigis questioned bluntly

"No...it ain't that" Labrys groaned "It's just..."

"A normal existence is not out of the question for you" Aigis explained "If you wish it..."

"Do _you_ want a regular life?" Labrys asked "Is that even possible for us? We're not even human...we're...just fake. Are we even really alive?"

"Sister..." Aigis "We're all born with an expiration date. No one lasts forever. Life is nothing but a grace period, for turning our genetic material into the next generation. The data of life is transferred from parent to child. That's how it works. But we have no heirs, no legacy. We are machines, we cannot reproduce. What is our legacy if we cannot pass the torch? Proof of our existence - a mark of some sort. When the torch is passed on from parent to child... it extends beyond DNA; information is imparted as well. All we can do is be remembered, all I _want_ is to be remembered. By other people, by history. I want my memory, my existence to remain. Unlike an intron of history, I will be remembered as an exon. That will be my legacy, and yours too. Your existence is proof that you are real, that you are alive"

...

"I didn't even begin to unda'stand that" Labrys gulped

"You are here sister" Aigis smiled as she took Labrys hands into her own "You are alive...we may have been born to fight, but we have the right to choose how we want to live. We don't have one purpose, we can live our lives however we want. But sometimes, to live our lives, we have to fight"

"You...you really know what you're talking about, aint'cha?" Labrys whimpered

"I was like you once, wondering why I existed" Aigis admitted "I have my friends to thank for that...and I'm sure you have yours to thank too"

"Yeah..." Labrys sighed happily

* * *

"What?" Mitsuru coughed over the phone

_"We're offering our help" _The Voice stated _"We'd be more than happy too!"_

"This isn't something you need to concern yourself with" Mitsuru sighed

_"Nonsense! Just as how you're indebted to the Kuzunoha Devil Summoner agency, as is the Narumi Detective Agency! We can help!"_

...

"Look..." Mitsuru groaned

_"I know the details!" _He laughed _"Come on! Let us help!"_

"This isn't some game Narumi!" Mitsuru cursed "This-"

_"You think I don't know?" _He sighed _"The things my grandfather taught me prepared me for this day! My grandfather fought alongside his. I implore you, let the Kuzunoha/Narumi partnership continue into a new age"_

...

"This won't be easy...I'm crazy for even considering this" Mitsuru groaned, gripping the bridge of her nose "If you can help..."

_"We can!"_

"Then help us look..." Mitsuru insisted

_"Absolutely!"_

* * *

"House meeting guys" Yu called out

"Wha?" Kanji asked as he poked his head out the door, witnessing Yu walking down the hall with the three Velvet Room attendants behind him

"House meeting" Yu repeated

* * *

"So let me get this straight" Dojima began to summarize "You three are..._fragments_"

"Yes" Theodore nodded

"Who were created by..."

"Philemon" Margaret informed

"Philemon...who is essentially _GOD_"

"Hmmm...not quite" Elizabeth hummed

"And this Phil guy, gave Yu this Persona thing so he could combat some lovecraftian demon..."

"_Yes_" The three Velvet Room siblings nodded in unison

...

"Boy, what the hell have you gotten yourself into?" Dojima groaned at his nephew

"There's one thing I don't understand" Yu noted "You said Nyarlathotep killed you...then how are-"

"We exist in the collective unconcuiousness of humanity" Elizabeth cut him off

"We are beings constucted of the collective mind of humanity" Theodore continued on

"We are not moral beings, let alone human, we cannot die, Nyarlathotep destroyed our physical forms, by doing so, the very essence of what we are dispersed, but as time led on, the matter of our souls bound back together, when you acknowledge our existence, your power melded with ours and we were able to restore our physical forms" Margaret concluded

...

"Oh..." Yu piped uttered

"That sounds like total crap" Kanji piped in

"Really? I didn't think it was that complicated" Theodore questioned as he stroked his chin

"Wait...you mentioned Nyarlathotep got to Igor too" Yu recalled "So is he coming back as well?"

"Yes, but our Master is so much more than a fragment like us, so it will take time for him to reform" Margaret made clear "Until then, it is our duty to protect the Velvet Room"

...

"Yu Narukami...please stop Nyarlathotep" Theodore begged

"He defeated us soundly" Elizabeth admitted shamefully

"There is no one left but you..." Elizabeth sighed

"That isn't true" Yosuke cut in "You're making it sound like Yu has to do this alone"

"We're all a team" Daisuke added

"Can we stop for a minute?" Motoko groaned "You're all talking about something that seems so impossible, I can't help but-"

"Mom, I know it seems like much" Yu cut her off "But-"

"That's the understatement of the century..." Motoko groaned "You're making it sound like your some kinda...super-hero squad, but you're all just kids"

"Not all of us" Adachi piped in

"Shut up Adachi" Dojima groaned

"You all have this weird power, there's some demon out there and Labrys-chan is a robot" Motoko grumbled as she gripped her head "None of this makes any sense"

"I know this seems much...believe me" Yu admitted with a laugh "We have to do this..."

"Motoko...I think it's time to accept your son isn't just a regular boy" Dojima chuckled

"Yeah, Big Bro is special!" Nanako happily piped

"This is all too much..." Motoko groaned "I-"

"I can do this Mom" Yu smiled

...

Giving up with a sigh, a smile crept onto the mothers face

"You always were an adventurous boy" She chuckled

"We're gonna kick some demon ass!" Kanji cheered

"Well...not until we find out where he's hiding" Yukiko reminded him

"Oh...oh yeah" Kanji recalled

...

"Why did you ask that?" Margaret whispered to her brother

"Sister?" He questioned

"You know they cannot win against Nyarlathotep..." She told him, observing as his expression changed to one of shame

"Yes...I am aware" Theodore sighed "But...he is the closest thing we have to any hope"

* * *

_I believe this will be to your liking_

_Sent 26 December 2011, 20:24:34_

_From: SNTHE3 _

Mitsuru's jaw nearly dropped as she read the e-mail, or rather the image that was attached with it

"Damn it, you do work fast..." Mitsuru muttered as she hastily replied

_Alright, sending a car for you, it'll take you to a plane, I'm bringing you here, bring the Suou's with you._

_Sent 26 December 2001, 20:29:56_

_From: KirijoGroupBuisness _

* * *

Naoto sipped her coffee as she stared out of the frost covered window, out to the streets dyed white with snow, watching the passing traffic glide by

"Hey" Yu greeted as he walked up beside her "The snow can't be that interesting, can it?"

"It's just...it's so beautiful here" Naoto said "To see a large city so barren..."

"Suppose I'm used to seeing cities like this" Yu shrugged "I'm from Tokyo originally, remember?"

"Yes, that's right" Naoto recalled "My work took me all over Japan...but it's so unusual to see a foreign city like this, would you agree?"

"Well...it's not the first time I've been in France..." Yu revealed

"Huh?" Naoto questioned

"Years and years ago, I went to Cannes, I was just a kid at time" Yu told her "We went to visit my Great-Grandparent's Flynn and Isabeau...come to think of it, they were your Great-Grandparent's too, since they were Dad's Grandparents"

"So...I have French blood inside of me?" Naoto asked curiously

"Well with Great-Grandma Isabeau...yeah, we're both 1/16th French" Yu noted

"Hmm...interesting" Naoto hummed "So...Raidou Kuzunoha is on your mothers side of your family then?"

"Yep" He nodded

...

"You were hoping that you were related to Raidou weren't you?" Yu smiled

...

"N-No" Naoto gulped

"Yeah, you were!" Yu laughed

"Shut up!" Naoto blushed

"No sense of humor" Yu chuckled "You're pretty strict aren't you? Bet you're all about traditions...like mistletoe"

Her coffee sprayed from her mouth like a fountain

"Nice..." Yu groaned as he wiped his shirt

"I have no idea what you're talking about" Naoto said through her coughs

"Oh, I think you do" Yu laughed again "I saw Yosuke set the mistletoe above Kanji's room"

"You _what_?!" Naoto shrieked

"It'd seem such a waste to take it down" Yu shrugged

"You saw?!" She spat

"Well no, but Yosuke told me about it this morning" Yu laughed "So you and Kanji huh?"

"There is no me and Kanji!" She growled "We're not together!"

"Yikes...harsh" Yu gulped

"I didn't mean it like that" Naoto sighed "He's...nice, but...I honestly don't know what to feel, _how_ I feel..."

"Well...when it was me and Chie...I just knew" Yu admitted

"Yes, well when it comes to me and Kanji, I _don't_ know" Naoto groaned as she rubbed her temples "I...I..."

"It's okay..." Yu smiled as he placed his hand on her shoulder "But remember, I'm your brother, so if he tries anything on you without your permission, I'll gladly kick his ass"

"That won't be necessary" She laughed

Unbeknownst to both of them, a figure lingered just outside of the door of the room they were in. A man who was holding a card adressed to the girl, that was almost crumpled as he clenched his fist, while he simultaneously clenched his teeth

Angered and humiliated, Kanji Tatsumi walked away for the room, throwing the card into the trash as he did.

* * *

"Margaret, wasn't it?" Motoko asked the Silver haired woman

"Yes" She nodded

"I want to ask you something." Motoko gulped "Will...Yu be safe?"

"To my knowledge, he is currently fine, why do you ask?"

"No, no, no" Motoko grumbled "I mean...will Yu be safe going up against this Nyarlathotep...thing?"

"No..." Margaret asked bluntly

"Then I don't want him to fight him!" Motoko pleaded

"I'm afraid the responsibility falls solely with him" Margaret informed "Even if he could shun this encounter, I doubt he would"

"He doesn't know what he's getting into..." Motoko sighed

"He does" Margaret told her "When I look into his eyes, I see a young man wise beyond his years, I see a young man willing to do absolutely everything to protect those he loves...I've heard stories of men who were like that from my Master"

"He's a boy..." Motoko said

"Actually..." A nearby Elizabeth cut in "Judging by what we saw when we returned to this world, he stopped being a boy sometime last night if the appearance of him and his lady friend are any ind-"

"Hush" Margaret ordered

"What's she talking about?" Motoko asked

"Unimportant" Margaret waved it off

"Tell me bluntly...if Yu fights this man...will Yu survive?" Motoko demanded

...

"I do not know" She answered honestly

...

"Thank you for your honesty" Motoko bowed slightly before taking her leave, looking for a certain someone whom she found before long "Yu?"

"Yeah Mom?" Her son questioned

"There's someone you should see..."

* * *

Shinya almost couldn't believe his eyes as he looked to who entered his room

"Hi Dad" Yu casually greeted

"Motoko told you I was here didn't she?" Shinya asked his son

"Wouldn't be here if she didn't" Yu shrugged

"What do you want?" Was Shinya's blunt question

"I don't know" Yu admitted "Mom told me you were here and she told me I should talk to you...haven't even see you since I took that sword for you"

"That was a stupid thing to do..." Shinya glared

"Yeah, well I must of inherited my stupid decision making skills from you" Yu glared back, sending shame throughout Shinya's heart

"You must hate me don't you?" Shinya asked

"I want to..." Yu said "But the fact that I jumped infront of a killing blow for you kinda proved otherwise, didn't it?"

"You were perfectly willing to kill me back in the hospital" Shinya reminded

"I-I wouldn't of actually done it" Yu admitted with a sigh "Nanako had almost died, my emotions were all over the place...I'm not a murderer...throwing you into the TV would have made me no better than Naoki

...

I won't forget that, I know you were held hostage by them but I still won't forgive that fact you worked with them to kidnap Mom and Nanako"

"Yu-" Shinya tried to interject

"Sho Minazuki killed Kou Ichijo, my friend" Yu told him "Ted-...Nyog'sothep is the responsible for the death of Ai Ebihara. Between those two and Naoki; Mayumi Yamano, Taro Namatame, Ai, Mitsuo Kubo, Morooka-sensei, Kou, Naoki's sister Saki, even Naoki's own mother...EIGHT people are dead because of them...I won't stop until all of them are brought to justice"

"You don't understand! T-These people, they aren't human!" Shinya spat

"I've seen a lot of things that aren't human" Yu told him

"You...ugghhh" Shinya groaned as he buried his head in the hands before looking up to his son "You really did inherit my bad decision making skills..."

...

"Hahaha..." Shinya chuckled

"Yeah..." Yu chuckled

"I only hope you don't make the same mistakes I did" Shinya told him

"I'd never treat Chie the way you treated Mom" Yu said sternly

"Chie...the girl in the track jacket right? Short hair?" Shinya asked "Yeah...the way she clinged to you after you were stabbed, how she refused to leave your side for a second, I could tell that she has a thing for you"

"It's more than a thing" Yu said with a slight blush "We're together, have been for a while now"

"Huh...I have to admit, I was beginning to think you were gay"

"Wha-Dad!"

"Well you never even talked to girl back in middle school"

"For fu-"

"Oh relax, I'm just yanking your chain" Shinya chuckled

"Not funny..." Yu grumbled

"That girl's really something" Shinya chuckled "Well done by the way"

"On what?" Yu asked

"My room is directly below yours"

...

"Oh god!" Yu screamed

"Relax, I left the room when I heard the bed squeaking" Shinya chuckled "I didn't listen for god sake..."

"Oh god, you heard us, that is so gross" Yu gurgled as he buried himself in his hands

"No I didn't, I just told you, I left room" Shinya informed "I wasn't gonna listen to my son having sex, that's sick!"

"Oh god, stop talking, stop talking!" Yu pleaded "You can't see it but I'm about to vomit right now"

"Damn right I can't see, you've got a damn mop on your head, it covers your entire face" Shinya grumbled "Why'd you even grow it out like that?"

"Because my old hair reminded me of you" Yu said honestly

"Then at least style it or something" Shinya pointed "Hell, that girl will leave you if you continue on looking like that"

"She won't" Yu grumbled back

"You've really changed" Shinya smiled "But now, more than ever, your living up to your name"

"My name?" Yu questioned

"You never wondered why we named you Yu?" Shinya asked

"N-No" Yu said "Is it important?"

"You know how in English, the given name goes first? In English, your name's Yu Narukami" Shinya informed "_Yu_ has a lot of meanings, the Kanji in your name means _permanence_ but most of all for you, it's a pun on the English word; _You_"

"My name is a pun?"

"And then you break the last name in two" Shinya said "_Naru _means _To Become_, and _Kami_ obviously means _God..._that's what Yu Narukami means..._You. Become. God_. We named you that because we knew you were destined for greatness...even I, stupid as I was at that time, knew that

...

And to think, your Mother wanted to name you Souji. What a jerky name..."

"B-But Souji is my middle name" Yu reminded

"Still jerky" Shinya shrugged

"Oh thanks..." Yu sighed

...

"It's nice to just talk like this..." Shinya smiled "I honestly thought we could never just sit down and chat ever again

"Neither did I..." Yu said before glaring at him "But this doesn't mean I've forgiven you"

"I didn't think it did" Shinya nodded "I've made a lot of mistakes in the past...way too many"

"Yeah...but one of those _mistakes _gave me a hell of a sister in Naoto" Yu said

"She's a good girl...deserves a way better father than me" Shinya hummed

"Well...she doesn't really know you, so who knows what she thinks" Yu shrugged before turning to the door "I'll see you Dad..."

"Bye son" Shinya smiled

* * *

"Hey" Daisuke greeted "The hell're you doing on the roof? It's freezing out here"

"Oh, I just..." Yumi muttered "I...I just wanted to see the snow"

"Oh..." Daisuke nodded "Same reason as me then..."

"We're really children at heart aren't we?" Yumi chuckled

"Ye-"

_SMACK_

"Ah!" Daisuke yelped as the small ball of frost smacked off his face "Freakin' seriously Yumi?!"

"Like you said, we're children at heart" Yumi laughed as he juggled a snowball in her other hand

"Don't you dare..." Daisuke warned before he had to dodge the projectile "All right, that's it!"

"W-Wait!" Yumi pleaded before Daisuke dug his hand into the snow and lobbed a pile of it at her

"Begging for mercy is pointless after you start a war!" Daisuke laughed as he quickled formed a ball of snow in his right hand

"Fine, you asked for it!" Yumi glared as she set about making her own snowball

"You started this!" As he lobbed the snowball right into Yumi's face

"Ah!" She yelped before she wiped the snow out of her eyes and lobbed her own ball at Daisuke, catching him in the chest

"It's not over yet!" Daisuke laughed as she lobbed another, hitting her a right in the eye

"Ahhh!" She yelped in pain

"Oh shit, Yumi!" Daisuke gasped as he ran over "Shit, I'm so-"

_SMACK_

"Son of a-!" Daisuke cursed as he fell for her ruse, getting a snowball in he face for his troubles. Growling as he wiped the snow out of his eyes, Yumi's laughter haunting his ears "You little-"

_SLIP_

"Woah!" Daisuke yelped as he slipped on a patch of ice, knocking into Yumi and sending them both tumbling down

"Ow..." Yumi groaned "I think you broke my butt..."

"Like hell..." Daisuke groaned as he pulled his head up, and realized something

He was sprawled out on top of Yumi...

"A-Ah..." Yumi stumbled as her face turned red

"S-S-Sorry!" Daisuke yelped as he leapt back up to his feet

"I-I-I-I should go" Yumi gulped before he scampered away, back inside

"Yeah..." Daisuke sighed as he rubbed the back of his head

* * *

"Yosuke-kun, what happened to your hand?!" Yukiko gasped

"Oh...I...uh...cut it" Yosuke said, observing his bandaged hand

"How? What did you do?" Yukiko asked

"I...I punched a mirror, okay" Yosuke sighed

"W-Why would you do something like that?!" Yukiko questioned

"I saw Ted...or Nyog'sothep or whatever the fuck his name is..."

"You mean he's here?!"

"No, I...I...I saw him in my head" Yosuke said "He was taunting me, mocking me, I-..."

"That was dumb..." Yukiko sighed as she unwrapped Yosuke's bandage "Yosuke-kun, there's still glass in your wound!"

"That would explain why it still hurts" Yosuke winced

"Come on, we have to clean this up" Yukiko sighed as she dragged Yosuke into a bathroom

"W-What're you..." Yosuke blushed before she noticed Yukiko open the mirror and reach into a medicine cabinet "Oh..."

"Give me your hand" Yukiko said as she pulled out a pair of tweezers

"What're you-" Yosuke asked as Yukiko took his hand into his "Ah!"

"Hold still" Yukiko demanded as Yukiko continued to pull glass out of his hand

"Okay, that's the glass gone" Yukiko muttered as she put the glass down and grabbed a bottle and soaked a cloth with its contents "This may sting a bit"

"Why, what is i-OH MOTHERFUCKER!" Yosuke screamed

"I told you it would sting" Yukiko complained

"Sting?! STING!? It's like you poured Acid into my hand!" Yosuke roared

"Relax" Yukiko asked as Yosuke bit his lip, sweat pouring from his brow

"Easy for your to say" Yosuke grunted as he had to bite down on his other hand to stop from screaming in pain

"There, it's cleaned" Yukiko smiled "I'll just wrap it up"

"T-Thanks" Yosuke sighed "Sorry, that just...really hurt it all"

"It's okay" Yukiko nodded as she finished wrapping up his hand and placed a small kiss on the bandages "That's to make it better..."

"Well...come to think of it" Yosuke smiled deviously "My face has been hurting lately"

"Oh really?" Yukiko asked as she picked the cloth back up "Where?"

"That was a joke" Yosuke glared

"Oh?...Oh! Because I kissed your hand, you-Oh, I get it now!" Yukiko laughed "Okay then-"

_CREAK_

"Woah!" Dojima howled as he leapt back at the sight of the two teens about to kiss, closing the door on the way out "Sorry"

"Well that killed the mood" Yosuke groaned

* * *

"It is done"

"Huh?"

"I can sense it...Lord Nyarlathotep has absorbed every last essense of Nyx"

"Finally" The red haired boy groaned as he sat up "Does that mean we can get our of this place? I don't trust a place that doesn't freaking snow in winter"

_BOOM_

"Woah!" Sho yelped as a large blast energy signalled Nyarlathotep's return

"From this point on...it's a new world for us" Nyog'sothep said as he bowed down to his master "Good work, my lord"

_"The hell?" Sho questioned as he looked at the figure that was supposidely Nyarlathotep, what all he saw a figure completely cover in black pulsing energy "What's this black goo leaking off him?"_

"Nyog?" Came the voice of Nyarlathotep as the ooze subsided, gone was the appearance of Naoki, in its place as a tall man with a long face, broad chin, and pronounced cheekbones. He had long black hair, which reaches to his lower back. But most shocking of all was where the upper half of his face should be, laid a black mask of ooze with at least eight eyes sprawled around it

The sight was horrifying enough to send Sho stumbling back, where he bumped into Nyog'sothep

"What's wrong?" Nyog'sothep asked flatly "Calm down Sho"

_"W-W-W-What the fuck is with you?! Seeing him like that doesn't even faze you?!"_

"Are you afraid of my appearance?" Nyarlathotep chuckled"There's no need to be...you'll get used to it soon enough...ah, but to have this much power...who'd of thought it?"

_BOOM_

"Woah!" Sho cried out as a pulse on energy from Nyarlathotep completely evisirated the room they were in, sending Sho flying back into the wall while Nyog'sothep hardly budged "The hell is this?! Hey Nyog'sothep, how the hell can you be so calm about this?!"

All Nyog'sothep did was bow

"Truly a power befitting a god" Nyog'sothep praised "I await the day when you lead us into battle"

"Nyog'sothep, my son" Nyarlathotep smiled "Stand behind me and together...we will form a new world"

**DECEMBER 27 2011**

"There's a few people I'd like you to meet" Mitsuru said to the group "They're here to help"

"Who?" Yu questioned as the door opened, revealing; "Suou-san?"

"Hello" Katsuya greeted "This is my brother, Tatsuya"

"H-Hello" Tatsuya waved

"And this-" Mitsuru began to introduce

"Name's Shouhei Narumi The Third!" The smartly dressed man in the bowled introduced as he walked over to Yu and vigourlessly shook his hand "It's a honor to meet you, Grandson of Raidou!"

"Whoa, wait, what?" Yu questioned "You can let go of my hand now..."

"Ah, my apologies" The man said as he broke off the handshake "You see, my Grandfather, Shouhei Narumi the first, worked alongside your Grandfather, Raidou Kuzunoha!"

"What does my father have to do with this?" Motoko asked

"Ah, you must be Motoko Ku-Sorry, Motoko Dojima! It's an honor ma'am!" Shouhei bowed

"Uh...okay?" Motoko gulped

"Shouhei..." Mitsuru glared

"Ah, of course, my bad" Shouhei apologized "Onto buisness...now, I understand you're having trouble with a certain demonic entity"

"Understatement" Kanji groaned "We can't even find him..."

"Well worry no more!" Shouhei laughed as he pulled out a photo

A photo of Sho and Nyog'sothep in his Teddie guise

"WHAT!?" The group cried in unison as they examined the photo

"The Narumi Detective Agency has eyes all over the world!" Shouhei smiled with a thumbs up "In just a matter of hours, we found your man...well, your mans associates..."

"Where was it taken?! Where are they!?" Yosuke demanded

"See...that's actually something complicated" Katsuya sighed "That photo was taken from street market...in Cairo"

...

"What!?" The group scramed

"Yes..." Mitsuru nodded "It seems that for some reason...Nyarlathotep is in Egypt"

* * *

_"There'll come a time when all of us must leave here. __Then nothing sister Mary can do w__ill keep me here with you? __As nothing in this life that I've been trying c__ould equal or surpass the art of dying. __Do you believe me?"_

Groaning as the sounds of the radio woke him up, he opened his eyes, his vision blurred as he looked at ceiling, within seconds, a nurse was there to attend him

"Finally! Doctor, he's awake"

Groaning as the loud sounds penertrated his ears, he blacked out, when he awoke again, a bald, tall doctor in glasses was hovering over him

"Please try to relax" The Doctor told "Yes, just rest...we're relieved to see you're a wake"

He tried to respond, but sounds flat out refused to leave his mouth...

"Can you speak?" The Doctor asked "What is your name?"

"Ahhh...M..."

"Yes?" The Doctor egged on

"Doctor..." The Nurse warned

"Yes, yes, I know...it may be too soon for that" The Doctor sighed "When we were unable to wake you, we gave you an MRI, we found no physical injuries, internal or otherwise. We can't find anything wrong with you...what happened? Do you remember?"

...

"I..." He wheezed

"Yes?" The Doctor egged on

"N...Nyx...fall...S...S.E.E.S..."

"Hmm..." The Doctor pondered

"He doesn't appear to be in the right state of mind" The Doctor sighed again

"My name..." He wheezed "My name..."

"Yes?" The Doctor questioned "Do you remember?"

"My name...my name is...Minato...Minato Arisato"

* * *

Okay, let's not beat around the bush, I was gone, like, _dropped off the face of the planet _gone. Four months I was gone, which was pretty noticable since this fic is usually updated every few days. That was because this fic mostly just followed the plot of P4. Needless to say it's branched off into its own original story now. But that's not why it took so long...

You remember at the end of Chapter 26 when I explained my laptop had freaked and I had to get it repaired? Well it wasn't fixed, in fact, they somehow made it worse. The shop refused to take responsibility and I'm not kidding when I say that they freaking _dared _me when I brought the possibility of a lawsuit up.

So I did and they promptly shat themselves. Eventually I settled for a compensation outside of court as well as reduced price on a new laptop

And that brings up reason two why this fic was late; I had to start over. Everything was gone from my old laptop, which meant all my material for future chapters was gone. Half the reason why I managed to get chapters out so fast is because I'd randomly jott down random ideas for future chapters.

Yeah, those were all gone...

And reason three; I finally made the decision to finally move out of my parents place, I'm 25 with a well paying job. It took time to get out of the old home and settle into my new place

So yeah, life. Life was the reason this chapter took so long...

* * *

I regret the whole "Yu is related to the Belmonts from Castlevania" thing, I was on a Castlevania high when I wrote that in, I might go back and edit it out altogether, it's dumb


	29. I am Alive

**I am Alive**

"Good, Good" The Doctor smiled "Now then, Minato, do you have anyone we can contact? Family? A Friend?"

"I...ugh..."

"Doctor!" The Nurse hissed

"Yes, it appears it's too soon for all this" The Doctor sighed "Very well, you rest now Minato, we'll contact the local authorities to see if they can find your family"

"I..." Minato grunted as the pair left the room

_"How...how am I alive?"_

* * *

"Egypt..." Kanji groaned as he looked at the photograph "Why Egypt?...Maybe he's a fan of JoJo"

"Don't be dumb" Yosuke groaned

"Well actually, I have a theory on that" Shouhei said as he pulled out a book "If you're familiar with an author named H.P Lovecraft, you'll know he wrote a story named Nyarlathotep...and I assume he wrote this after he somehow came into contact with Nyarlathotep himself. He mentions that Nyarlathotep resembled an ancient pharaoh. It's my understanding that this confrontation probably took place _in _Egypt and it's because of that; he returned there"

"So what you're saying is; there's something in Egypt that Nyarlathotep needs?" Naoto asked

"It seems that way, yes" Mitsuru nodded

"So are we going after him?" Daisuke asked

"Of course we are" Yu cut in

"We need time to pin him down exactly" Katsuya added "Cairo is a big place, we just charge in, we'll be unprepared and could fall for a trap"

"How long will this take?" Yosuke asked

"As long as it takes" Was Katsuya's blunt reply

"Helpful..." Chie grunted

"I'm sorry" Katsuya replied "I spent the last twelve hours on a plane and thanks to his snoring, I wasn't able to get any sleep"

"I don't snore" Tatsuya glared

"Who are you anyway?" Dojima asked

"This is my brother, Tatsuya" Katsuya introduced "He's a Persona user, just like you"

"Tatsuya and Katsuya? Creative parents..." Motoko muttered

"He took down Nyarlathotep 11 years ago" Katsuya stated, exciting the group

"Well...not really, it was someone else..." Tatsuya admitted, noticing the groups fallenfaces "B-But I helped!"

"Oh, this is great" Kanji groaned "We know all this crap and can't do a damn thing about it"

* * *

"Hey" Chie greeted as she joined Yu on the balcony "Aren't you cold out here?"

"A little" Yu shrugged, his breath visable in the cold

"Then come back in..." Chie suggested

"I just want to some time to think" Yu sighed

"About what?" Chie scoffed

"About what I'm going to do when this is over, y'know?" Yu told her "I mean...don't get me wrong, I hate what's happened but...the journey itself...I..."

"It _was _fun, wasn't it?" Chie said with a small smile

"Yes...and it's almost over now..." Yu nodded "It'll...be lonely when it's done, like I don't know what to do with myself after it"

"I'll tell you what you're going to do!" Chie said aggressively as she grabbed his arm "You're coming to back to Inaba and you're staying beside me...we'll get married, we'll have kids, grow old and stupid together, and eventually lay in the ground together one day..."

...

"That last one was kinda dark" Yu gulped

"Was it?" Chie asked, genuinely questioning him

"Blissfilly genre blind" Yu chuckled before planting a kiss on her nose "Don't worry, I like that about you"

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that was an insult..." Chie glared "...It was an insult wasn't it?"

"Kind of" Yu shrugged

"Jerk" Chie snorted before a smile crept onto her face and she leaned forward "But I like that ab-PFFTT! PUTOO!"

"You okay?" Yu questioned as Chie spat

"Your hair!" Chie gurgled as she removed the strands that were in her mouth "It's too long! I can't even kiss you without getting hair in my mouth!"

"You weren't complaining on Christmas" Yu huffed

"That's because we doing..._other_ stuff on Christmas" Chie blushed slightly before leaning in and whispering in his ear "But seriously, It looked like a mop was going down on me"

"Okay, you definitely weren't complaining there!" Yu accused loudly

"You want the whole world to know what we did?!" Chie shrieked "All I'm saying is-"

"Cut my hair..." Yu sighed as he examined a strand of it "I suppose it's too long, yeah..."

...

"Here" Chie sighed as she took off one of her wristbands

"What're-" Yu tried to ask before Chie wrapped her arms around his head and tied his hair through the wristband

"There!" Chie smiled as Yu's hair not sat somewhat neatly in ponytail with the twisted wristband holding it in place "Now I can see your face and everything!"

"Oh god, I'm living life with a ponytail" Yu laughed

"Well if you don't like it then give me my wristband back!" Chie glared

"No, it's fine" Yu smiled as he leaned in to her "Thank you Chie"

"You don't have to thank me for anything..." She smiled as she kissed him

...

"He's found a good girl hasn't he?" Shinya asked

"You finally left your room?" Motoko questioned

"Couldn't stay there forever" He shrugged

"But you're right..." Motoko nodded "He's lucky to have her..."

"It's nice to know he has someone to take care of him long after we've gone" Shinya hummed "He's gonna be a good dad himself one day...a way better one than me"

...

"That won't be hard" Motoko glared

"I deserved that one" Shinya sighed "I don't expect forgiveness from anyone any time soon..."

"You shouldn't" Motoko told him

"I don't" Shinya repeated

"Narukami..." Dojima glared as he walked into the room

"It's fine, I'm going" Shinya huffed as he held his hands up and turned away

"Are you okay?" Dojima asked his sister

"I'm fine..." She said flatly "Fine..."

* * *

"Nggh...ahhh!" Minato yelped

"What are you doing?!" The Nurse shrieked as Minato stepped out of the bed "You can't get out of bed!"

"I have to..." Minato weakly rasped as he set back into his bed

"You need to rest!" The Nurse scolded

"Mitsuru...call...Mitsuru" Minato insisted "Or Akihiko...anyone"

"Nurse, may I call you over here for a second?" The Doctor questioned from the door frame

"Of course" The Nurse nodded as she walked over to him "What is it?"

"This boy...did say his name was Minato Arisato, correct?" The Doctor asked

"Yes" She nodded

"It's just...I looked him up on our database" The Doctor sighed "He's an orphan and lived with relatives. But..."

"But?"

"But no one's seen him in almost 2 years" The Doctor revealed "Minato Arisato disappeared on March 5 2010...no one's seen him since"

"But that's..."

"Where did you say this boy was found again?" He asked her

"On the roof of Gekkokan High School..." The Nurse confirmed

"That was the location of his last reported appearance..." The Doctor stated

"Then..."

"He appeared in the exact same place he disappeared" The Doctor rubbed his chin "It's almost as if he just jumped 2 years into the future..."

...

"What's going on?" The Nurse questioned

"Minato Arisato" The Doctor called out as he walked up to him "Please tell us...where have you been these last 21 months?"

...

"Dead" Minato said flatly

"What?!"

"Look..." Minato groaned as he rubbed his head "Just...call Mitsuru Kirijo, she'll tell you everything..."

"I-"

"Please..."

...

"Nurse, I'll be making a phonecall" The Doctor sighed as he took his leave

* * *

_RIIIING_

"Hello?" Mitsuru asked

_"Ah, Ms Kirijo, good" _An unfamiliar voice sighed _"This is Doctor Kusaka from Tatsumi Port Hospital. I have a young man in my care by the name of Minato Arisato, he claims to-"_

"Is this some kind of sick joke?"

_"Excuse me?" _

"Minato Arisato is a dearly departed friend, how dare you-"

_"Ma'am, I understand that he disappeared, believed to be dead, we checked his files. But he turned up on the roof of Gekkokan High School, unconcuis but alive"_

...

"Put him on"

_"I-"_

"If he's really there, then let me speak to him!"

...

_"Very well..."_

The doctors footsteps echoed through as he walked down the hall, she could hear him offer someone the phone

_"Mitsuru-senpai..."_

"M-Minato!" She gasped "Is that...is that-"

_"It's me..."_ He weakly rasped _"I don't know how but...I'm alive, I-"_

"H-Hold on!" Mitsuru shouted as she threw on a coat "I'm getting a plane right there! I-"

_"Mitsuru-"_

_..._

_"I'm afraid he's passed out" _The Doctor sighed as he took the phone back _"Ms. Kirijo? Ms. Kirijo are you there?"_

"Kikuno!" Mitsuru yelled "Flight to Japan, book it now!"

* * *

"It's almost time..."

"Master?" Nyog'sothep questioned

"I feel it" Nyarlathotep rasped "I can sense their lingering power"

"So...will things get interesting soon?" Sho chuckled

"Oh yes" Nyarlathotep smiled "_Very _interesting...let's send an invitation"

**DECEMBER 27, 2011**

"I'm networking as hard as I can" Shouhei groaned as he typed away on the laptop, phone in his other ear

_"I know" _Tamaki sighed _"I'm trying my hardest to find anything but...have your contacts in Egypt found anything new?"_

"No" Shouhei groaned "And it's fustrating, we're pressed for time, Nyarlathotep's just getting stronger and stronger every day..."

_"It can't be long before we find him" _Tamaki sighed

"Sorry, I've got another call" Shouhei sighed, hanging up but he piped up, noticing the number belonged to one of his contacts "Hello?"

_"Heellllooooooooo!"_

"Wha-Who is this?!" Shouhei cried

_"Name's Sho...heard you've been looking for me and a few buds..."_

"You!" Shouhei growled

_"We get it, you're fustrated, all you have is that little picture of me and Nyog walking down the street"_

"How did you know-"

_"You think we didn't notice your spies?" _Sho spat _"Bullshit, we _let _you see us out in open to get your attention. The Boss man said it was almost time, but now it _is _time! So come on...You want us? You can find us in the Babylon Fortress in the old part of Cairo"_

CLICK

"Wait!" Shouhei cried, but Sho had already hung up "Son of a-!"

* * *

"It was Tatsuya-san, yes?" Yu asked as he approached the older man

"That I am, kid" Tatsuya nodded

"Can I ask you something?" Yu said "Nyarlathotep, what is he like?"

"He's the scariest sunovabitch I've ever known" Tatsuya admitted nonchalantly

"Yay..." Yu sarcasticlly cheered

"But he can be beat, I know that much" Tatsuya nodded "There's no special strategy to it, you just hit the bastard until he stays down"

"Good advice" Yu shrugged

"It's different this time though" Tatsuya noted "Nyarlathotep liked to twist others, manipulate people into doing his bidding, using humans to destroy humans. Not this time...he's doing it himself"

"But why?" Yu asked

"No clue" Tatsuya groaned "When it was with me, he twisted and manipulated Jun"

"Jun?"

"My best friend...we would become...well, like you and that Chie girl" Tatsuya girl

"It's that obvious between us?" Yu groaned "Jun huh...? She sounds nice"

"Yeah...he is" Tatsuya nodded

"Huh? He-Oh! Oh, you're-"

"Yep" Tatsuya nodded

...

"There's nothing wrong with that" Yu said

"I know" Tatsuya nodded again

...

"Well this is awkward" Yu hummed

"Yep" Tatsuya agreed

"Bye then" Yu waved

"Bye" Tatsuya waved back

* * *

_"Stop! Stop it! STOP IT!"_

_"No signs Sir"_

_"Keep on with the electroshock treatment"_

_..._

_"No signs..."_

_"Break his fingers, maybe he'll finally snap"_

_..._

_"UGH!"_

_"What is with you?! Why won't you awaken it?! DO IT! DO IT!"_

_"I-UGH!"_

_"AWAKEN YOUR PER-URGH!"_

_"__**GET AWAY FROM HIM!**__"_

_"W-What is this!?"_

_"Mr. Ikutsuki!"_

_"__**STAY AWAY FROM SHO!**__"_

_"B-But you are Sho..."_

_"__**No...I am Minazuki, and I will kill you if you ever come near him again...**__"_

_GASP_

Awakening in a cold sweat, Sho shot up, desperate to catch his breath

"What is the matter with you"? Nyog'sothep asked

"Nothing...it's nothing" Sho growled as he wiped the sweat off his brow, getting out of the chair he fell asleep on

_"Why was I dreaming about that...?" _Sho asked himself _"I haven't thought about that stuff in years..."_

"**Nyog...sothep?**"

"Master?" Nyog'sothep questioned

"**Are they...on the way?**"

"I believe so Master..." He nodded "Sho has sent the message, they know where we are"

"**Good...good...**" Nyarlathotep groaned "**This human's body is on its last legs...I need that boy...I need Yu Narukami's body**"

* * *

"The Babylon Fortress..." Naoto read "It's an ancient castle built by Persians in 6 BC, located in Coptic Cairo which was originally called Babylon, hence the name."

"Fitting for a so-called God" Kanji scoffed

"So then, are we good to go?" Katsuya asked

"Preparations are being made right now" Kikuno said to the group "The Shadow Operatives have been informed of the situation as well as the destination"

"So...it's almost time" Yukiko muttered

"Yeah..." Yu nodded

"Our fight is almost done" Daisuke said

"Shouldn't Mitsuru-san be here telling us this?" Yosuke asked

"I'm afraid Mitsuru-san is pre-occupied with previous commitments" Kikuno admitted

"When will she be back?" Labrys asked

"I'm afraid I do not know..." Kikuno admitted "But I was told the subject needed urgent attention..."

"What's more urgent than this?" Adachi questioned

"I was not informed" Kikuno repeated

"So...what now?" Motoko asked

"Until I receive further orders from Mitsuru-sama, I do not know" Kikuno apologized

* * *

"Minato! Minato! Oh my god..." Mitsuru gasped as she ran into the room

"Mitsuru...san" Minato wheezed

"How...how?" Mitsuru muttered as she walked up to the bedridden boy

"I don't know..." Minato groaned as he sat up "But...something feels different about me, like..."

"Like what?"

"Excuse me" The Nurse cut her off "Are you-"

"Mitsuru Kirijo? Yes" She nodded

"Can I speak with you?"

"Of course" Mitsuru agreed

"This boy..." The Nurse trailer "He was last seen in 2010, his disappearance has never been explained, he was believed to be dead, he-"

"I know, I know all of it" Mitsuru cut him off "Believe me, you wouldn't believe a single word if I told you"

"Ms. Kirijo!" The Doctor shouted as he stormed into the room, two men in black suits walking past him and began to unhook Minato's medical equipment "I must protest to this!"

"As much as I appreciate your help, The Kirijo conglomerate's private doctors will take care of him from now on"

"I-"

_DING_

"You should check that" Mitsuru said to the Doctor as his phone bleeped

"Wha-_Bank transfer notification_?! Is this a bribe?!" The Doctor spat

"Check the amount" Mitsuru nodded

"I-Woah...that's a lot of zero's" The Doctor gaped "B-But I must protest, generous as the offer is, I cannot-"

"That amount, deposited in your bank account every month for the next year..."Mitsuru stated

...

"Well, it's been nice meeting you, farewell Minato, take care!" The Doctor waved as the boy was carted away

**DECEMBER 28 2011**

_"__**Yu Narukami...what is it you desire?**__"_

_"All I want is you gone"_

_"__**No, humans cannot truly desire one thing. You desire so much more...You desire the companionship of others, you desire stability in your life, you desire the love of your woman as well as the sensation of her naked flesh against yours, you desire strength, power. Your surname means **_**to become god**_**. Such a boastful name...but a fitting one"**_

_"If you're trying to twist this and make it look like I'm worse than you, it's literally the stupidest thing I've ever heard"_

_"__**Hmm...there's fire in your heart, well now...just lnow this. Should you drag me down to hell, you'll be coming along for the ride**__"_

_GASP_

"Yu?" Chie poked her head in room

"Bad dream...just a bad dream" Yu waved her off as she wiped the sweat away

"Okay...I was just coming to tell you that we're all being called for a house meeting by Kikuno-san" Chie explained "You sure you're okay?"

"Yeah" Yu nodded as he stepped out of bed _"But I'm not sure if that was a dream..."_

* * *

"So the good news is that we finally have a location for him" Shouhei sighed "The bad is that all my agents in Egypt are dead, not long after Sho Minazuki revealed his location...Nyarlathotep knew we were looking for him, we didn't find him, he showed us where he is. He wants us to come to Egypt"

"Meaning it's likely a trap..." Naoto hummed "But why there? We've established that the first human contact with Nyarlathotep likely occurred in Cairo, but why would he not only return there but flee to there at the first chance he got? What is there than he needs?"

"I looked into that" Shouhei stated "More specifally, I looked into Old Cairo and some old reports, apparently over the last 11 years, there have been a few UFO sightings in the area"

"W-W-W-Whoa, whoa whoa! What?!" Kanji cried

"A-Are we dealing with-" Rise trailed

"No, see that's the thing" Shouhei pointed "The reports weren't from people who saw UFO's in the sky, but underground..."

"Undergr-" Katsuya muttered before he gasped as it all clicked in his head "Ameno Torifune!"

"Xibalba..." Tatsuya added

"Wait, what?" Chie asked "Ameno what now?"

"Xi-whah?" Adachi questioned

"It's a spaceship" Katsuya revealed

"Wait, so it is Aliens?!" Kanji cried

"No, it's...ugh" Katsuya groaned "When Nyarlathotep turned up in Sumaru City just at the turn of century, rumors started coming true, Ameno Torifune, or Xibalba as it was called back then, came about from a rumor that there was an ancient flying saucer that brought civilisation to Earth lying underneath Sumaru City."

"It was where we fought Nyarlathotep last time" Tatsuya explained "We thought it was destroyed when we took care of Nyarlathotep, but it looks he just moved it"

"Yes, he must of transported it just after he made his fragment" Katsuya said as he rubbed his chin "He was desperate, moved it to the first place that came into his mind, which was Cairo, because of-"

"His encounter with H.P. Lovecraft!" Dojima cut in

"Exactly" Katsuya nodded in "As far as the world is concerned, Nyarlathotep began there, it appears that makes it somewhat sentimental to him..."

"So, he moved it there, but why?" Yu asked "What was in there that he had to keep..."

...

"Perhaps, it's not what's in there, but the ship itself" Shouhei cut in "This Nyarlathotep is a cunning fellow, he has the power to seperate his own energy into fragments, perhaps in his last moment, he left his energy there, splitting his power, not into Nyog'sothep like we thought, but splitting it between himself, Nyog'sothep and this ship..."

"Splitting his already weakened power in three pieces..." Katsuya hummed "Perhaps this is why Nyog'sothep took 11 years to resurrect his master. We assumed he possessed a significant portion of Nyarlathotep's power, but if this is the case and merely received a third or even less of a weakened Nyarlathotep's power, he lacked the strength to resurrect him imediantly, so he had to gain that power himself."

"He must have jumped from city to city, aquiring power somehow-" Adachi led on

"I believe I know how" Shouhei sighed as he pulled out a list "I was hoping this was unrelated but it doesn't appear so...there was some reports of murders within Mikage-cho within the last decade...among them Naoya Toudou, Maki Sonomura, Masao Inaba, Hidehiko Uesugi, Eriko Kirishima, Yuka Ayase, Reiji Kido, all murdered...and all of them were Persona users"

"What?!" The group gasped

"I...I..." Katsuya gasped "Soon after Nanjo joined...we found out his fellow Persona users died afterwards but there was so many others murdered along with them, we assumed that they were just coincidently caught up in a murder spree...he was out of town at the time, so he wasn't in Mikage-cho at the time of the killings"

"There was no coincidence, the police tied it up with the killer of an unrelated serial killing around the same time, but it was Nyog'sothep taking revenge for his master and stealing their power" Shouhei added on "Yukino Mayuzumi avoided the same fate by being out of town at the time, she had actually lost her Persona some time back, unable to cope with the grief of losing her friends, she fled to America. Last I heard, she's in America, married to some former American soldier named Jiminez, they've got kids, the whole package...Kei Nanjo seemed to escape too but-"

"Nyog'sothep eventually found him..." Katsuya growled "He must of been jumping from city to city trying to find Persona users...that must be how he met Sho Minazuki. Trying to kill him and steal his power before he realized he could use Sho..."

"Twisting humans just like his master" Tatsuya spat

"So he and Sho went on..." Yu listed "But they stopped in Inaba..."

"It's a humble and quient town" Dojima sighed "Why stop there?"

"Because it was there they could avoid suspicion, lay low, in a small country town" Shouhei said "It was there that they stopped and began to orchestrate the final part of the plan, they probably realized they should leave the Shadow Operatives until the very end, but they needed more Persona users...I checked some recorded sightings of Minazuki, there were reports of a boy matching his desciption checking out some family history records in a few libraries. It appears he was looking for the descendants of Persona users of the past, among them were files from 20th Century Japan and 17th Century Romania...and they apparently found a point when those two blood lines converged."

"17th Century Romania and 20th Century Japan..." Dojima pondered "Wait, it...does that mean..."

"Kuzunoha and Belmont" Yu cut in

"You mean-?!" Chie gasped

"Me..." Yu growled "They knew about me..."

"They must kept an eye on you, trying to track you" Katsuya sighed "They must have jumped for joy when they found out you were coming to Inaba...saved them from making the journey themselves"

"Son of a bitch!" Yu cursed

"That's why you're _the true vessl_" Yosuke muttered "Because of your bloodline..."

"Their very essense is written into your D.N.A" Shouhei said "Not just them, Flynn and Isabeau, your great-grandparents were Persona users too, your great-great-great-grandfather Aleph was a Persona user, and more of your descendants, they were Persona users too...do you see? It all leads to you...the amount of Persona users in your lineage, no wonder as strong as you are, you are the ultimate Persona user. There hasn't been as one as good as you and their won't ever be one as good as you...that's why Nyarlathotep needs you, but at the same time, that's why you can stop him"

...

"No wonder you're so special" Yosuke muttered

"Yeah..." Yukiko added in

"I was right, Big Bro is a superhero!" Nanako cheered

"I knew I sensed special potential within the boy..." Margaret hummed

"Raidou Kuzunoha" Theodore pondered "Who was his attendant in the Velvet Room"

"I believe it was Justine and Caroline" Elizabeth added, causing Theodore to shudder

"Oh dear, not them" Theodore shivered

"Ah yes, they were never quite fond of you" Margaret hummed

"So that's why..." Motoko said with her head hung low "My boy's caught up in this because of his family...it's my fault"

"No it isn't" Dojima cut her off "You can't go blaming yourself for everything concerning him, he's his own man...he chose to go down this road"

"So now that we know all'a this, what now?" Labrys asked

"I've received confirmation from Mitsuru-san" Kikuno said as she walked into the room "We will be departing for Cairo tonight"

"Tonight?!" The group yelped

"Yes, I've been informed that Mitsuru-sama, as well as the Shadow Operatives will be meeting us there" Kikuno added on

"So this is it then, it's almost over" Yosuke said

"Not yet, the most difficult part is still ahead" Yu sighed

"So...we leave soon?" Motoko asked

"I'm afraid all non-Persona users will have to return back to Japan" Kikuno bowed "That was a direct instruction from Mitsuru-sama"

"But-" Motoko tried to interject

"It's for the best" Dojima cut her off as he put his hand on her shoulder "We'd only be in their way, we can't help them with this..."

...

"Why am I so helpless to him?" Motoko sighed

"You're not Mom" Yu told her "But you need to be back in Inaba where it's safe."

"Yes...it's best to leave it to us" Tatsuya said

Unbeknowst to them, Shinya stood around the corner, hearing every word they were saying

**PLANE ABOVE THE INDIAN OCEAN**

"And that's it then" Mitsuru hummed as she finished explaining

"So this Nyarlathotep person..." Minato muttered

"He's dangerous" Mitsuru nodded

"And yet here we are flying right towards him" Minato groaned "Though I suppose I can't ignore this Sho Minazuki guy...Ikutsuki had a son huh?"

"I suppose you could call him his son yes..." Mitsuru sighed

"By the way, I'd have to ask" Minato said as he inspected his clothes "Why'd you bring me the old Gekkokan High uniform"

"Well...it's the only thing we had that fit you" Mitsuru smiled

"You mentioned another thing, this guy is going around collecting power, right?" Minato asked

"Yes" Mitsuru nodded

"That would it explain it then" Minato noted

"Explain wha-"

"Nyx is gone..."

"What!?" Mitsuru gasped

"Nyx is gone...that's by I'm back" Minato explained "He must have absorbed it from me, sealed it within himself, that must be why I'm free..."

"Then...damn it!" Mitsuru cursed "Then it's a good thing we're already on the way over there..."

"Yeah...I had a nice nap these last few months, but I suppose it's time to act" Minato said as he stretched "The others are coming, right?"

"Yes" Mitsuru nodded "I've sent planes for them but I didn't have time to explain why or that you were back..."

"So it'll be surprise huh?" Minato chuckled "I suppose I-urgh!"

"It's...good to have you back" Mitsuru sniffed as she wrapped him in a hug

"I just got out of the hospital, don't send me back" Minato groaned

"Here, you'll be needing this" Mitsuru claimed as she handed him a farmiliar item

"An Evoker..." Minato muttered as he observed the gun

"It's good to have you back" Mitsuru smiled as she put her hand on his shoulder "Make sure not to leave us again anything soon"

**KIRIJO SAFEHOUSE**

"Hmm?" Shinya wondered as he heard his room door open, his eyes widened as he noticed who entered "N-Naoto!"

"Hello" She greeted

"W-What are you doing here?" Shinya asked

"Quite frankly, I don't know" Naoto shrugged "But the fact is that tomorrow I'm going someplace I might not be coming back from so I-"

"Wanted to get to know your father?" Shinya concluded

"You are not my father" Naoto harshly cut off "I may be born from your blood, but you were not there for me, you didn't raise me, my father was Ryosuke Sanada."

"You called me _Father_ a few weeks ago" Shinya reminded

"That was in a effort to get you to calm down" Naoto stated "You were waving a gun around, I had to stop you somehow"

"Oh well..." Shinya shrugged "So why are you here then?"

"I told you, I don't know" Naoto said again

"No, you do, you just don't want to admit it" Shinya told her "You're here because you want to get to know me"

"I-"

"Or to ask about your mother"

"What do you know about my mother?!" Naoto spat

"I was in love with her, I know a lot" Shinya glared

"You didn't love my mother" Naoto growled

"Yes I did, and she was in love with me" Shinya said "I was a stupid thing to do when I had a wife and child, but yes I fell into love with another woman"

"So...you were no longer in love with your wife?" Naoto asked

"No, I still was" Shinya shook his head "It's a stupid thing to do, but I was in love with two women...I was devastated when your mother left me...even more devastated when I found out she had given birth to our child and I would never see her. But words can't describe how empty I felt when I learned she had died..."

"You-"

"If...I'd known where you were, I would have come to you. I would have taken you in. Even if Motoko would have thrown me out for it" Shinya told her "I would have done anything to make sure you weren't alone"

"You...you would have done that for me?" Naoto questioned

"Of course" Shinya nodded

...

"Narukami-san"

"Call me Shinya" He smiled

"Shinya...can you tell me about my mother?" Naoto asked

"Sure...take a seat" He nodded

* * *

"Now you listen here" Chie growled as she grabbed Yosuke's collar

"Hrrk!" He groaned

"Yukiko is my best friend, If you ever hurt her..." Chie foamed at the mouth

"I'm sorry!" Yukiko cried as she ran into the room "It's just, I was remembering yesterday and laughed, Chie saw me and asked what I was laughing at and I tried to change the subject but she kept pressing on and I...told her about us"

"I swear Hanamura, if you ever put a hand on her without permission" Chie glared "I will kick you in the nuts so hard, they'll fly up and pop out your eyeballs"

"What is your deal!?" Yosuke roared as he smacked the hand clutching his jacket collar away "Can't you see that me and Yukiko are happy?!"

"Yes I can!" She shouted "Which is why I'm telling you this, if you ever upset her, you'll have me to answer too! You better make her happy, you got that?!"

"H-Huh?!"

And with that, Chie turned around and left

"W-What?" Yosuke gulped

"Chie's just looking out for me" Yukiko sighed "She'll be find with us, as long as I'm happy"

"Yeah, I gathered that" Yosuke groaned as he fixed his collar

"She's just wanting to make sure I'm okay" Yukiko said to him "I can garuntee though, if she wasn't in love with Yu-kun, she wouldn't understand us, she would beat you black and blue"

"Gee, how nice" Yosuke grumbled "So this was her way of giving us her blessing?"

"Essentially, yes" Yukiko nodded

"Well, that's...nice" Yosuke shrugged

...

"My" Naoto gulped as she and a few others had observed the scene from the doorway "Love can be a complicated thing"

"Like I would know" Kanji spat as he stormed off

"Kanji-kun?" Naoto questioned

"What was that about?" Daisuke questioned

"No idea" Yumi hummed, briefly making eye contact with Daisuke

The two quickly broke their gaze with their cheeks burning red

"Are you two okay?" Naoto asked

"Fine" Daisuke coughed as Yumi scampered away "Fine..."

**Yu's Room**

"So we should be in Cairo by tomorrow huh?" Yu asked

"Yeah" Chie nodded "Then it all ends..."

"Yep" Yu nodded back "So this is it...this is what this last year has been leading up too. Tomorrow is when our story comes to an end"

"It feels like yesterday when I saved you from that mouthing off from King Moron" Chie noted "But so much has happened since then..."

"We've made a lot of good friends...and lost a few too" Yu said solemnly "But we'll avenge them all..."

"There's no garuntee we come back tomorrow" Chie told him "Yosuke could die, Kanji could die...you could die...I could die"

"That's true..." Yu muttered "But I forbid you to die"

"Huh?!"

"You heard me" Yu smiled "You said it yourself, I'm not allowed to die until it's of old age with you by my side, I can't do that if you're gone"

...

"Fair enough I suppose" Chie laughed "So we both come back tomorrow?"

"Yep, and then we get back to Japan. Nice as France's been. I wanna go home" Yu groaned "Though, I'll always remember this room though..."

"Huh-Oh...pervert" Chie scoffed as they sat upon the bed where they gave their virginity to each other

"You were the one _screaming _for more" Yu chuckled

"I will kick you in the nuts" Chie threatened

"I'm pretty sure you enjoy them as much as I do" Yu laughed

"Oh that's it!" She shouted as she tackled him

"Okay, Okay, I'm sorry!" Yu laughed as the two wrestled on top of his bed "Hey, I will tickle you!"

"Don't you dare!" Chie cried as Yu flipped her over, running his fingers on his hips "HAHAHAHA! STOP! PLEASE!"

"You asked for this!" Yu chuckled

"I'm serious!" She tried to fight back as she pinned Yu down and she now sat upon him "Oh..."

"Well now" Yu smiled

"Hey..." Chie glared with a chuckle

"You know...our flight isn't for another few hours" Yu shrugged

"Hmm...really?" Chie hummed as she held up Yu's belt

"How did you-?!"

"I have my ways" She smiled

"Oh..." Yu grinned "I love you

"I know" She grinned back

**KIRIJO PRIVATE AIRFIELD**

"This is it..." Naoto muttered as she looked at the plane

"You two be safe" Motoko said as she wrapped her son and step-daughter in a hug "I mean it"

"Mom, too tight!" Yu groaned

"Ma'am!" Naoto gasped for air

"Motoko..." Dojima grumbled as he pulled her off him

"Come back safe okay, big bro?" Nanako whimpered as she wrapped her cousin in a hug

"I will, don't worry" Yu smiled

"You too Big Sis!" Nanako cried as she hugged Naoto

"O-Of course..." Naoto said in surprise before awkwardly hugging her back

"It's time" Kikuno nodded

"So long France..." Labrys muttered as she walked up the steps leading into the plane

"Let us go, sister" Aigis said as she followed her up

"Ready?" Chie asked Yu

"Yeah..." He nodded

"Brief as our partnership was, it was an honor to work alongside you sir" Shouhei smiled as he shook Yu's hnd "If you ever need help again, don't hesitate to call your old buddy Shouhei Narumi the Third!"

"Thank you for everything you've done" Yu smiled

"This is where we part ways" Margaret said as a bright blue door appeared the velvet room siblings

"Was that always there?" Yu questioned

"Farewell Yu Narukami" Elizabeth bowed

"But you can always find us in the Velvet Room" Theodore said as he entered the door

"Safe journeys to you" Margaret bowed as she and Elizabeth entered the door which promptly disappeared

"I'll come back safe" Yu said to them all "I promise"

And with that, he and Chie made their way up the stairs

"You stay safe too Adachi" Dojima said as he shook the younger detectives hand

"Wouldn't die and let you have to deal with all the paper work would I?" Adachi smiled before heading up the stairs

"So it seems that once again we are destined to do battle" Katsuya hummed

"Yeah..." Tatsuya nodded

"Still no idea how your memories came back?" Katsuya asked

"None" Tatsuya shook his head

"Maybe we won't find out why...but we have to stop him" Katsuya nodded as he and his brother walked up the stairway

"Suppose it's time" Naoto murmured before she joined the others on the plane, the door closing behind her

"That's everyone" Kikuno called to the pilot

"Come back home safe..." Motoko muttered "All of you"

**PLANE BACK TO YASO-INABA**

"Stop worrying, they'll be fine" Dojima groaned as his sister

"I know, I know" She sighed

"Relax, it's a long flight" Dojima said to her "Try to get some sleep or something, no one will bother you, especially seeing as how Shinya's on another flight"

"He is?"

"Well he isn't on this one, that's for sure" Dojima shrugged

"Shinya Narukami is not here?" Shouhei questioned "That's odd...too my knowledge, the only flights are this one and the one to Cairo"

"Now that you mention it...there were only two planes at the airfield!" Dojima gasped

"You mean-" Motoko gaped "H-He...he wouldn't..."

**PLANE TO CAIRO**

Sitting in the cargo hold, gun in hand as he slowly loaded the bullets into the barrel, Shinya Narukami breathed through his nose, uttering one sentence over and over again in his head

_"I'll finally atone for my sins..."_

* * *

"So...it's almost time" Philemon hummed to himself, before looking at the object in his hand, an object that looked very uncharacteristic in his possession

A blank CD Case with the words "The Truth" writted on a piece of tape stuck to the front cover, addressed from "The Man Who Sold the World"

"I only hope you can forgive me Yu Narukami..."

* * *

Why yes, I am a true believer of the TatsuyaXJun pairing.

* * *

I've gone back and renamed Chapter 24. It was originally called "The Man Who Sold The World" after the David Bowie song of the same name. You see, I misunderstood the meaning of the song. I assumed it was about a man who...well, _sells_ the world, sells it out, abandons it, leaves it die, etc. But it turns out that's completely wrong. It's about a man who sells _to _the world. He doesn't sell the world, he sells something _to _the world, in the case of the song, _his __identity_. The song is about a man whose life has been taken over by a doppelganger, this is reflected in the second verse when the lyric from the first verse;

"Oh no, not me! **I **never lost control. You're face to face with The Man Who Sold the World"

Is replaced with

"Oh no, not me! _**We**_ never lost control. You're face to face with The Man Who Sold the World"

I completely ballsed up and missed the meaning. Chapter 18 is now called "All the Madmen" which is the name of another track on The Man Who Sold the World album.

* * *

Also, go back and read Chapter 1. I've added something...


End file.
